We are so familiar with the features of our homes that we have forgotten how to see them, notes architectural critic Edwin Heathcote in this handsome little volume—yet they are as full of symbolism and referential features as any church or public building. From windows to wardrobes, fireplaces to door knockers, Heathcote here explores the elements of our everyday domestic lives: how we build our houses on the souls of our ancestors; how ritual and symbolic elements transmute over time into practical features; and how this symbolic value often ensures that those features last long after their practical uses are forgotten.