Book Review: Building a Straw Bale House

Building a Straw Bale House: The Red Feather Construction Handbook by Nathaniel Corum, published by Princeton Architectural Press, 2005. (Amazon)



The Red Feather Development Group "educates and empowers American Indian nations to create sustainable solutions to the severe housing crisis within reservation communities." This book focuses on their efforts in using straw bale construction to meet those goals. Like shipping containers, recently straw bale has seen an increased interest by architects interested in sustainable means for housing and other building types. The biggest impediment to both uses tends to be restrictive local building codes, but once that obstacle has been overcome, this book becomes an excellent -- though not exhaustive, as the author explains -- resource for building a straw bale house. Each of the ten chapters delves into the different aspects of construction, from foundation and site work to interior walls and finish details. The text is very clear and concise, not requiring a degree in architecture to understand. Mainly, the book exhibits the trial-and-error learning that has come from the group building many houses over the years, trying to find the optimal means of constructing with this sustainable material.