Fine Woodworking on Hand Tools: 38 Articles Selected by the Editors of Fine Woodworking Magazine

Rating:
Summary: Great gift for a home woodworker
Review: I bought this as a gift for my father, who has done his share of small projects around the house for decades but isn't one of those "I'll build a Windsor chair" types. It went over very well. I was concerned that Fine Woodworking, which is sort of like the Architectural Digest of woodworking, would be too advanced but it was apparently dead-on for a person who is serious about woodworking but hasn't had the time/experience.

Rating:
Summary: Mixed lot
Review: There is a very wide variety here. It shows how to make your own chisels and gouges (apparently not a don't-try-this-at-home project), your own knife and your own bow saw. I also cannot see myself making a wooden thread. However the "how to make your own axe-handle" was most interesting, I must certainly read the "how to take care of your scraper" again and the "how to use a knife safely" has already repaid me the cost of this book many times over.

I can also see how the information on cleaving, the how to use an axe (a proper axe, not of the mass-production type), and how to use a spokeshave or drawknife may be invaluable.