It was 1997 when Akron Beacon Journal columnist David Giffels and his wife Gina stumbled upon the decaying Gilded Age mansion in Akron. Trees burst through the roof, there was no electricity, and aside from a senile old lady, the only other beings calling this place home were variety of woodland creatures…
This article appears in Jan 2-8, 2008.
Did they tell you, or do they tell in the book, what they did with the money they found?
So, it’s 2008 and David Giffels considers himself the “head of the household”? How submissive does his wife have to be?
Maureen-
The “head of the household” are the reporter’s words, not Giffels’s.
I was fortunate enough to receive an advanced copy of this book, and it is truly an amazing piece of personal work. Both funny and sad, it is also inspiring. I’ve read many books in my life, including the classics, but think in terms of sheer joy it has given me, it is my most favorite book.
PS – They sold the antique money for more than face value to collectors.
I read about the book in the NYTimes today. Harper Collins says basically no photos in the book, only 4. That’s disappointing. I’m sure old house fanatics would have been much more likely to buy it with a bunch of photos of the restoration in progress. Do the Giffels have a web site with house photos?
kat,
There is a Multimedia slide show with the NY Times article that shows several before/after shots of the inside of David Giffels’ home.
Looking at the incredible job he did and the ‘after’ results, my brain exploded! He did a mind-blowing job on what he’s been able to do so far. Some TV home makeover show should volunteer to do the rest of the project for him, just for the Herculean effort he’s put in to date.
He’d get major Style Points from me just for having written a DEVO book – but after seeing these house pictures and reading that article, I just have to say – David, in case you read this, you totally KICK ASS dude!!!!!!
Having restored (or, more aptly, being in the process of restoring since one is never done) an old home myself, I read this book in one day. Seriously.
I just sat down, falling down walls, tumbling ceilings, and cracked concrete be dam@#d and became absorbed in Giffel’s world.
I get him. I really get him. Despite being a female I trod the same path. Rats? No problem! Roaches? Huh what? Collapsing celing? But look at those (now exposed) bones! No heat? We’ll be hardy souls!
11 years and two kids later (we were pregnant with our first when our journey began) I know of what he speaks. David and Gina are My People.
IF you have to ask “why” then you just don’t get it.
I too would have liked to see more photos because I’m addicted like that. The house, however, was both entirely the point and beside the point. So I truly understand why photos were kept at a minimum.
I loved this book and Googled Giffels today because of it.
I used to live in this house back in the sixties. It was really a fantastic piece of architecture. Always wanted to purchase it but it never came to happen. I congratulate David on restoring this house into a fine home.
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