Author: John Vivian
Publisher: Storey Books, 1992
Soft Cover, 8″x10″, 174 pages

There is a reason why some books stay in print year after year after year. This little book is the ‘Elements of Style’ of the language of stone walls. The typography, line drawings, and black and white photos are a joy to peruse. And building with stone is exhausting work, which leaves plenty of time to peruse over a long lunch break…John Vivian has dry wit as well:”In the old days New England Farmers would patrol shared stone fences each spring, each replacing the smaller winter-dislodged stones on his own side, the two of them joiningforces on the big ones. As the crochety Yankee farmer in Robert Frost’s Building Walls puts it, ‘Good Fences make good neighbors.’ Don’t know as I agree with the sentiment. Frost didn’t.I’d say, don’t build a shared fence unless you are already good neighbors and plan to remain so for the next several generations.”

There is a lot of very valuable information here – offered in a concise format.