Art Carpenter, local artisan and one of the most renowned American furniture makers of the 20th century writes about his self-taught process of becoming a woodworker and designer of innovative and creative furniture. His book, 160 pages with striking color photographs, has been over 20 years in the writing. The book includes an introduction by his son, Tripp, with recollections by Garry Bennett and David Ellsworth.

An excerpt from the foreword by Glenn Adamson, deputy head of research and head of graduate studies at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London:
Name a contradiction, and Art Carpenter lived it. He was a square among hippies; a master craftsman who knew how to cut (or at least round) corners; a modernist with a rustic aesthetic; a much-revered icon who disliked being an object of attention. Even his name seemed to embody the happy union of two things normally kept apart. Though he hated the pun, it fit him perfectly. He was indeed a woodworker with deep aesthetic sense, or put the other way round, a born artist who knew how to get things done.