Book Rec of the Day 4/17/2007

THE PERFECTIONIST

Michael Ruhlman is a journalist who becomes immersed in his subjects. In order to tell their stories, he lives with them. To write The Making of a Chef, he actually attended cooking school and got a job as a chef. To write Wooden Boats, he moved to Martha’s Vineyard and worked with two of the finest builders of wooden boats alive. The resulting book is a gorgeous ode to the craft of the artisan and the elegance of tradition. A must for sailors and woodworkers and everyone else who believes that God is in the details.

WOODEN BOATS: IN PURSUIT OF THE PERFECT CRAFT AT AN AMERICAN BOATYARD, by Michael Ruhlman (Penguin, 2002)