A-frame

the long version

""A" was the architectural letterform of leisure-time houses in postwar America. Eager to stake out mountain and lakeside retreats, an entire generation of weekend builders found the A-frame a simple and affordable home to construct, its steeply sloping triangular shape distinctive and easy to maintain (almost no exterior walls to paint!). Fueled by A-frame plans and kits, the A-frame became something of a national craze, with tens of thousands of built." "In the process, the A-frame evolved into an icon for recreation. Agreeably modern and comfortably traditional, it was used to market a wide range of products, including gas-powered toilets, motorcycles, and canned vegetables; Fisher-Price even made one for children. So popular on the domestic front, the A-Frame was eventually adapted to other building types, from roadside restaurants to churches." "In a look at this architectural phenomenon, Chad Randl tells the story of the "triangle" house from prehistoric Japan to its lifestyle-changing heyday in the 1960s. Part architectural history and part cultural exploration, A-Frame documents every aspect of A-frame living using cartoons, ads, high-style and do-it-yourself examples, and family snapshots. It even includes a complete set of blueprints in case you want to build your own!"--BOOK JACKET.