AROUND HOME : The English Country Room : BY MICHAEL PICK (Harmony Books; 1988)

THE ENGLISH COUNTRY look has been at the forefront of decorating popularity in the United States for almost two decades. But only in Britain, with its modest cottages and historic manor houses, does this “look� come alive. This is not a how-to book, but a compendium of comfortable rooms chosen from a variety of English country houses that embody the spirit of the somewhat quirky, often elegant, occasionally worn and lived in, always charming country decor that is truly British. The rooms pictured throughout the book (photographed by Fritz von der Schulenburg) offer a wide range of styles that never appear “decorated.� One can almost hear the crackle of the fires and smell the bread baking in the ovens of the warm, rustic country kitchens. ($24.95)