Tour of Insanity

A book review of Tour of Insanity: A Manifesto for Better Home Design by Kelly Mitchell and Matthew Zakutny

Stars: ***

Kelly Mitchell (2020)
History of Design
122 pages

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This post contains affiliate links.

Summary: Have you ever walked around your house wondering WHY this was installed that way or WHY there is orange shag carpet in the kitchen? Maybe you wondered WHY there has to be a front yard or WHY do pests keep getting into your home? We provide a comedic look at the WHY and some insight on what should be. This book provides a tour of the insanity of past, present, and future home design highlighting the tragic comedy of why things are the way they are and what could be done differently to elevate home design.

We address the absurd notions of shag carpeting in bathrooms and what led to their demise as well as how to shore up your home from pesty invaders. Tour of Insanity is designed to spark conversations and provide comic relief while introducing solutions. If you want serious, mapped-out architectural and home décor enlightenment – walk away, this book isn’t for you. We provide odd facts, bizarre history, and viable solutions that in most cases are beyond our control. After reading, you will walk away with interesting stories and whimsical knowledge that is great for warming up dinner conversations, but first and foremost, you will smile.

Tour of Insanity

This book was a fun look at home design aspects that don’t make sense. Some are from the past (like carpets in bathrooms) and some are current (like front yards.) Each one is explained and better alternatives are given. There are colour photos included to illustrate what is talked about. I read the e-book and it included links to related websites or blog posts that elaborate on the given topic.

The authors swear so if that isn’t for you, keep that in mind. However I didn’t find it too excessive which I appreciated. I learned new things about home design and found the manifesto interesting. It was really interesting to learn that many places around the world do not have front yards. I didn’t know that. I also learned about one-way glass. It doesn’t work the way you think it works.

Reading this book makes me want to read more about the history of interior design (and exterior.)

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