Rating: 
Summary: Buy The 3 Book Set
Review: These books are great, nice enough to display, do yourself a favor and get the 3 book set, you wont be sorry.
Rating:
Summary: Very usable
Review: This book is very well organized and has many excellent examples of cabinet construction. He goes into great detail on all types including frameless cabinets.I have been looking for something which would give me the basics as well as provide for more advanced concepts. I am very pleased to have found such a thing in one volume. I highly recommend this book.
Rating: 
Summary: An Excellent book meant to be used in the shop
Review: This book shows all the techniques that can be used to build cabinets, which is the structure most furniture is built from. It is abondantly illustrated, is not necessarily targeted at accomplished enthusiast (I only own a few power and hand tools, no table saw, jointer, planer, and still do not feel left behind when reading this book), and well chaptered. It is not meant to be read from page 1 to page 300, but rather on a when-needed basis. I would have liked it to be a bit more developped on each subject, but at 300 pages it is already a big book. Recommended for everyone, perhaps especially for those who are rather new to woodworking.
Rating:
Summary: woodworking for the rest of us
Review: This is an excellent reference guide in simple and concise language; good for the hobbist or professional. This book is not intended to give a blow by blow, but merely to highlight directions. Woodworking is, as it always has been, a working tao, where one hopefully never loses the sense of discovery. One realizes that if it were just about "Slamming It Out" we'd use plastic.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Work
Review: This is yet another excellent volume in Taunton's 'Complete Illustrated' woodworking series. Focused on (but not really limited to) furniture and cabinet construction, the book takes the reader through 1) Tools and Materials, 2) Box and Case Construction, 3) Doors, 4) Bases, Feet, and Stands, 5) Frame Construction, and wraps up with 6) Tabletops and Work Surfaces. This is an ambitious undertaking under any circumstances, but Andy Rae finds an approach that is both broad in coverage and tightly organized.
After a few initial wobbles as the book gets underway, the reader will grasp the overall approach and discover that there seems to be an endless supply of techniques and idea one can draw on. Whatever your level of building there is good material - this is one of those efforts that can help you make a breakthrough in quality of work.
Unlike many how-to books this series stays away from getting bogged down in projects. This allows the writer to move around and offer a lot of alternatives rather than get bogged down in one way to do things. It doesn't hurt to have a project in mind when reading the book, but be sure that it will change several times as you read and absorb the ideas.
I have a buffet table that owes a great deal to Andy Rae's ability to communicate both technique and design. Thus the book paid for itself in one fell swoop. Happy woodworking!
Rating:
Summary: Its really quite good!
Review: Through my work as a public librarian I recently ordered this book, and subsequently had the opportunity to be the first at my library to read it! I am very impressed with the sheer scope of the work. Having long been a fan of the Taunton Press I expected this work to be very good quality, and I was not disappointed. I agree with most of the favorable comments made by other reviewers, but I have to disagree with the claim made by another that this book is disjointed. I found it to be very readable and informative. To me the beauty of this book is that there is something in it for everyone. Beginners will of course gather the most new knowledge here, but even seasoned woodworkers (and woodworking book junkies) will find it interesting and above all useful. Besides the grand scope of the book, I was impressed most with the fresh and creative ways that common woodworking knowledge is presented. I found that the way the chapters were laid out, the order of presentation, felt very natuaral. Each subject flows nicely into the next. I particularly liked the sections illustrating the most common forms of a particular component of woodworking. Such as, the most common methods for mounting and fitting drawers and doors, the most common edge details for shelving, the most common dimensions for various categories of furniture, etc. If I had to sum up why this book is a great buy I would have to say it is because this book serves as both an encyclopedia of woodworking facts (usefull to all woodworkers among us) and a comprehensive collection of tips and advice (which novices will find especially helpful). I highly recommend this purchase.
Rating:
Summary: Its really quite good!
Review: Through my work as a public librarian I recently ordered this book, and subsequently had the opportunity to be the first at my library to read it! I am very impressed with the sheer scope of the work. Having long been a fan of the Taunton Press I expected this work to be very good quality, and I was not disappointed. I agree with most of the favorable comments made by other reviewers, but I have to disagree with the claim made by another that this book is disjointed. I found it to be very readable and informative. To me the beauty of this book is that there is something in it for everyone. Beginners will of course gather the most new knowledge here, but even seasoned woodworkers (and woodworking book junkies) will find it interesting and above all useful. Besides the grand scope of the book, I was impressed most with the fresh and creative ways that common woodworking knowledge is presented. I found that the way the chapters were laid out, the order of presentation, felt very natuaral. Each subject flows nicely into the next. I particularly liked the sections illustrating the most common forms of a particular component of woodworking. Such as, the most common methods for mounting and fitting drawers and doors, the most common edge details for shelving, the most common dimensions for various categories of furniture, etc. If I had to sum up why this book is a great buy I would have to say it is because this book serves as both an encyclopedia of woodworking facts (usefull to all woodworkers among us) and a comprehensive collection of tips and advice (which novices will find especially helpful). I highly recommend this purchase.
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