'Held in Trust For Everyone Forever', featuring the properties and collections of the Bermuda National Trust is the second, and very much expanded, edition of the 1989 survey of the properties owned by the Bermuda National Trust.

Where the first edition was limited solely to real estate, the second encompasses the total range of property and artefacts entrusted to the organisation dedicated to the preservation of the cultural, historical and environmental heritage of Bermudians.

The volume reflects the extensive research undertaken as part of the Architectural Heritage book series, a project extending over 15 years and involving meticulous research by individuals like Hilary and Richard Tulloch who surveyed all the cemeteries in the Trust's care.

In his preface, president of the Trust Council, Bill Holmes describes the collection as a "priceless national legacy".

A brief overview of the Bermuda Historical Monuments Trust describes the drive and dedication of a few individuals to preserve Bermuda's architecture and history.

Then follows the histories of each of the Trust's properties from east to west, peppered with anecdotes of owners and occupiers who included murderers, adulterers, abusive husbands and slave owners as well as pillars of the community and paragons of virtue.

The anecdotes transform the buildings into homes and bring history alive.

While some of the properties' histories have already been covered extensively in the Architectural Heritage Series, tantalising tidbits about properties in parishes not yet featured are very welcome.

One particular tidbit is the revelation about the School Lands Cottage in Pembroke, which Trust researchers have determined was the home in which Mary Prince worked for a time when she was owned by Captain Ingham.

With a few exceptions, like "Verdmont" and "Waterville", each property is allocated a two-page spread.

The text is accompanied by full colour photographs by Katherine Cooper Berry that capture the mood as well as the appearance of the property.

There is enough detail to satisfy without overwhelming, making the volume a coffee-table book with depth.

The chapters on protected open spaces will provide walkers with a richer experience when they visit the properties, while those of islands and farmlands allow readers to "visit" properties otherwise inaccessible to the general public.

Chapter four covers the Trust's extensive collection of manuscripts and printed works, oil paintings and watercolours which provide a record of people and everyday life of years gone by.

The furniture, silverware, porcelain and pottery on display at the museums – even broken and discarded pottery – can reveal a great deal about Bermuda's early days.

The collections reflect the changing tastes and fortunes of their owners throughout the centuries.

The volume is a celebration of the achievement of dedicated volunteers and far-sighted individuals who work, often against considerable odds, to preserve what they can for future generations.

It is also a tribute to the generosity of a number of people who have made significant donations so that such properties may be preserved.

And while it is satisfying to note what has been saved, the reader is reminded too of how much there is till left to be done.

The purpose is "to impress upon all who read it, the urgency of the task that faces us", and provide a reminder "of what we must protect and hold as sacred … for the generations yet to come".

"Held in Trust" achieves its goal.