Making a Chair From a Tree presents an informative history of chairmaking and joinery. Author John Alexander brings the old method of using wood shrinkage to join parts back to modern woodworking, from splitting and shaping wood straight from the tree to the chair as well as finishing the chair and even weaving a bark seat. Using simple hand tools, John shows how to split and shape green wood into posts, rungs and slats.

Classic Planemaking Volume 1: Hollows and Rounds is a great starter for rediscovering the joys of using hand tools. Hollows and rounds form the basic kit of molding planes, and making your own set is a great and inexpensive way for you to get started in this creative art. Todd Herrli walks you through detailed step-by-step instructions for making a working plane.

On the verge of depression following the murder of his father, Cory, a nervous, guilt-ridden 12-year-old "altar boy", is coaxed by his adventurous best friend, Ben, to prove their manhood by embarking on their first overnight fishing trip out in the wild on the Mississippi Bayou's Wolf River; but their trip goes awry when the hapless "altar boys" become targets of a mob hit in progress by a cold-blooded assassin who is determined to collect on a gambling debt.