- Hardcover: 432 pages
- Publisher: Collins (1 May 2008)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0061373567
- ISBN-13: 978-0061373565
- Product Dimensions: 22.7 x 16.9 x 3.5 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 495,979 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
A Splintered History of Wood
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Product Description
Review
"Wonderfully strange and interesting....Mixing well-researched history, trivia and humorous anecdotes, A Splintered History of Wood meanders from chainsaw artists to belt-sander races, from Steinway pianos airdropped during WWII to the first know wooden tool: the toothpick."--NPR Morning Edition
Product Description
It is impossible to imagine a world without wood. From true relics of the cross to the invention of toothpicks to the famed Stradivarius violin and medieval catapults, wood has played an essential role in nearly every aspect of human existence. But this is no dull dissertation on the scientific properties of wood; instead, Spike Carlsen has traveled thousands of miles and interviewed hundreds of wood users and enthusiasts to carve out a comprehensive and dynamic history of wood's global impact and its personal significance to people in all walks of life.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
34 reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
A wise informative book full of good humor
17 Sep 2008
Format:Hardcover
This is a book about wood that will amaze you, inform you, make you wise and make you laugh. Where else, between two covers could you hope to learn about the history of the catapult, the worlds largest wooden airplane, a model city built of 2 million toothpicks, how a grand piano is made, the world championship belt sander races, and much, much more. On top of that you will get more solid, well-informed information about wood and trees than you ever thought you'd want to know. And you'll keep reading right to the end because it's beautifully and smoothly written and great fun throughout.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Who knew?!?
28 Sep 2008
Format:Hardcover
Spike Carlsen took a topic that could have been as exciting as, well watching wood grow, carved it into a well written story, with lots of humor and tales of how us humans---our very society itself---would not, could not be the same as it is today without this precious resource. This book, and the folks in it (and their unique personalities), and the woods themselves (each exotic specimen having its own incomparable story) is written with the same reverence an author would bring to a well researched and documented historical novel. He explains in exquisite, easy to read detail why certain woods are used for specific applications and how highly skilled craftsmen produce one of a kind pieces, which because they are made from material that were once alive, have taken on a life of their own. Great book I know will enjoy as much as I have!
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Not just for woodworkers
17 Sep 2008
Format:Hardcover
Because this book is as much about people as it is about wood it's incredibly readable -- and funny. The author got out from behind the desk and got into the stories as much as possible and shares self-effacing tales along the way.
The book is set-up as individual essays so readers can pick and choose where to start. I was drawn to the one on Jimmy Carter and how wood forensics helps to solve crimes.
It's good for the Cliffy Claven in your life as well as the public radio essay listener looking for a human lesson behind the facts.
The book is set-up as individual essays so readers can pick and choose where to start. I was drawn to the one on Jimmy Carter and how wood forensics helps to solve crimes.
It's good for the Cliffy Claven in your life as well as the public radio essay listener looking for a human lesson behind the facts.
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