Wood : Craft, Culture, History

by Green, Harvey (Author)

• ISBN13: 9780143112693
• ISBN10: 0143112694
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781101201855
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-11-27
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)

Summary

A rich, authoritative look at a material that plays an essential role in human culture Wood has been a central part of human life throughout the world for thousands of years. In an intoxicating mix of science, history, and practical information, historian and woodworker Harvey Green considers this vital material’s place on the planet. What makes one wood hard and one soft? How did we find it, tame it? Where does it fit into the histories of technology, architecture, and industrialization, of empire, exploration, and settlement? Spanning the surprising histories of the log cabin and Windsor chair, the deep truth about veneer, the role of wood in the American Revolution, the disappearance of the rain forests, the botany behind the baseball bat, and much more, Woodis a deep and satisfying look at one of our most treasured resources.

Author Biography

Harvey Green teaches history at Northeastern University in Boston and works in wood at his shop in rural New Hampshire. He is a two-time Fulbright Scholar and the author of three well- regarded books on American material culture.

Table of Contents

Illustrations	p. IX
Introduction	p. XVII
Into and Out of the Wood(s)	p. 1
Shelter	p. 49
The Rub of the Grain	p. 89
The Empire of Wood	p. 137
Artifice: Furniture, Faith, and Music	p. 189
Thinking Inside the Box	p. 231
Little Things with a Point	p. 275
Bat and Battle	p. 315
Fire, Smoke, and the Costs of Comfort	p. 359
Epilogue	p. 393
Acknowledgments	p. 407
Notes	p. 411
Selected Bibliography	p. 443
Index	p. 447
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