Tiny House, Big Life
By Dee Williams
Blue Rider Press, $26.95, 284 pages
Dee Williams thought she was living her generation’s version of the American Dream: she had a full-time government job, owned her own home in Portland, was surrounded by friends and had a devoted canine companion, yet when she had brush with death she realized how much of her life was being sacrificed to repairing, cleaning and maintaining her house. Inspired by a magazine article, she built her own tiny house on a trailer, downsized her possessions and found a friend’s backyard to settle down indefinitely.
The Big Tiny: A Build-It-Myself Memoir is not a how to book; people wanting to know how to build a tiny house or where to park it afterward should look elsewhere. Also, it is not the type of book suggesting an overall social change of building tiny home communities. Instead, it is one woman’s personal journey struggling with her heart condition and transitioning into life living in a tiny home, relying on humor, humility and a handful of interesting experiences rather than offering any deep wisdom beyond the standard minimalism discoveries.
Reviewed by Sarah Hutchins
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