Nantucket: Gardens and Houses

Heard, a longtime Nantucket resident, offers brief descriptions of Lewis's ( Christmas in Williamsburg ) 350 color photographs of houses and gardens of Nantucket, concentrating on names of bushes and flowers, and on the provenance of some of the many antiques pictured in the interiors of the houses. The gracious homes seen here range from small cottages to mansions, dating from the mid-17th century through today. The gardens vary in size, formality and function, with plantings ranging from wildflowers to English perennial borders. The pictures competently, often dramatically, document architectural points of interest, decoration schemes, etc. Numbing as a start-to-finish read, this is nevertheless an attractive reference/coffee-table book for those familiar with the island or those interested in a unique facet of New England design. (June)