The Man Who Made Things Out of Trees

Synopsis

Robert Penn has written a trio of books that combine an examination of skill and materials, with history, and his own personal narrative. For the Material Matters bookstore, I could have chosen It’s All About the Bike – the story of how he travelled the globe to build his dream road bicycle. Then again, I might be selected Slow Rise about his attempt to sow, harvest, thresh and mill his own wheat, in order to bake bread for his family. 

In the end though, I plumped for this beautiful take on how he created a slew of products from an ash tree he cut down in his local wood. They are all wonderful but this is my favourite.