Small is beautiful.

The New Small House, by Katie Hutchison.
(The Taunton Press)

If utilizing space is your main priority, Katie Hutchison’s new book is a great reference. A former Vineyard resident, Hutchison features blueprints for homes ranging from 600 to 1,640 square feet, plus tips on design strategies that will have you surprised at how “big” your small house can actually be.

There are other islands?

Beach House Happy: The Joy of Living by the Water, by Antonia van der Meer.
(Oxmoor House)

All Vineyarders presumably know well the simple but reliable pleasure that living near the ocean brings. As the editor-in-chief of Coastal Living magazine, Antonia van der Meer is a connoisseur of sandy doorsteps. Her many travels to some of the world’s best beach homes resulted in this veritable encyclopedia of house envy. From the shores of South Africa, to Venice, California, to our own fair Island – and, yes, that other fabled sandbar to the east – these beachy retreats might just tempt you to book a reservation and...naaaaahh, never mind, dumb idea, what were we thinking?

Okay, less small is not so bad.

A Sense of Place: Houses on Martha’s Vineyard and Cape Cod, by Mark A. Hutker.
(The Monacelli Press)

“Build once, well” is the mantra for Mark Hutker and his colleagues at Hutker Architects. Their newest book showcases thirteen homes that blend in well with their idyllic surroundings, and also offers advice for how best to design and build on the ever-changing shores of the Cape and Islands.