Wood: Craft, Culture, History |
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Wood: Craft, Culture, History
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by Harvey Green
Sales Rank: 484407
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Discount: 27 %
$2.70
At Amazon
on 6-20-2008.
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Features
Cover Type: Hard Cover with 496 pages
Published by: Viking Adult October 19, 2006
Written in: English
ISBN 10 Number: 0670038016
ISBN 13 Number: 978-0670038015
Book Dimensions:
8.9 x 6.3 x 1.7 inches
Weighs: 1.4 pounds
From Booklist
Histories of materials continue to rise in popularity, exemplified by this excursion into the uses and aesthetics of wood. Green, a student and practitioner of the craft of woodworking, spans the remarkable range of objects created from trees throughout human history. In addition to defining terms, such as the distinction between hard- and softwoods, Green reiterates throughout this fluent and pleasing work the uniqueness of wood, which contributes to its attraction. No two pieces are alike in appearance, and specific species of trees are preferred for specific purposes: ash for baseball bats, oak for ships, cedar for furniture. Whatever object Green investigates, he discovers its layers of historical, commercial, environmental, and artistic significance, not least in the substitution for wood by other materials. Despite this trend, however, wood is always more appealing to sight and touch than its competition: nobody loves a titanium golf club the way they do a persimmon-headed driver. Sophisticated but approachable, Green's work richly satisfies curiosity about the subject. Gilbert Taylor
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Product Description
A superbly entertaining, wide-ranging investigation of wood through history, culture, art, and science
We build our houses with it, burn it for warmth, carve it for beauty, sail in it, sit on it, play with it, and fight with it—yet how much do we really understand about the history and culture of wood? In this rich and fascinating book, Harvey Green looks at how wood in all its variety of form and function has contributed to an extraordinary range of human endeavors.
Wood reveals the history and culture of a substance that has been a central part of human life throughout the world for thousands of years. From the prized whorls of bird’s-eye maple to the oak and pine that made navies and empires, from the breathtaking stave churches of Norway to the enduring popularity of the Windsor chair, from the magic of turning to the grace of a Chinese chair, and from the botany of the baseball bat to the stunning carving of Native Americans of the northwest coast, Wood decodes how a seemingly common material has come to signal class, status, and authenticity. Using the historian’s craft and the woodworker’s hand, Green has fashioned an authoritative book sure to interest all who love this amazing material, appreciate its history, and care about its future.
Reader Reviews
This book addresses a huge topic, so huge it is difficult to review a book on it. FWIW a few notes: The easiest way to approach the topic is by organizing it around good illustrations: in this book the illustrations are limited to line-drawings and b&w photographs, printed on the same paper (not glossy) as the text. The illustrations do add to the book but not all that much. Some browsing proves to be rather hurtful: whenever the author touches on an aspect I know something about I am noticing mistakes. By this time I have come to accept that a book like this will muff the distinction between hard- and softwoods, but it also happens when the author discusses more mundane matters. All in all, I would recommend finding a copy of "The International Book of Wood" rather than buying this.
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Wood: Craft, Culture, History
Available from Amazon
Price: $2.70
Updated on 6-20-2008.
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NOTICE: All prices, availability, and specifications
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