One o~e page titles in this bookrefers to 'artistic woodturning'. It is a convenient,though perhaps not entirelyaccurate, distinction to make between thecraft as it was practised from antiquitythrough to the 1960's and 70's and woodturningas we know it today.Although essentially a history, viewingthis book as belonging only within thenarrow confines decreed by this description,does it a serious disservice. It is alsoan exploration of modern woodturningand an exposition of the work of many ofthe craftsmen and women who have beenat the forefront of its development, principallyin the USA.We have no way of knowing howmany thousands of years have passedsince a crude lathe was used to producethe world's first turned piece of wood. Wedo know, however, that with the exceptionof a few remarkable diversions suchas the ornamental turning of Holtzaphel,woodturning remained much the sameover most of that period.It was the confluence of ideas, technology,social and economic factors inthe decades after World War II thatbrought about the extraordinary changesthat we have witnessed since 1985.It was in that year the American Associationof Woodturners was establishedand it is the history of this organisationthat is the primary focus of WoodturningToday.

(It is, of course, significant that TheAustralian Woodworker was first publishedin 1985 and that in its early years,the editorial frequently addressed woodturningand its development in Australia.)The organisation of the content inWoodturning Today is both unusual andinteresting. The first half of the book isbuilt around a timeline from 1960 to201 o. There are essays by former presidentsand board members of the Association,photos of the work bei ng producedat intervals throughout the period andthere are personal stories from woodturners,presented in sections called Voices.The interweaving of the variousthreads makes an absorbing narrative.The second half of the book beginswith Woodturning since 1985, or to usethe name given this study: Woodturningin the Era of the American Association ofWoodturners: 1986-2010. Th is is followedby consideration of woodturningtoday when the AAW boasts 13000 membersorganised into more than 300 chapters.Examples of work produced in thisperiod, continue to illustrate the text andthe Voices also continue to provide a personalview of the trends that built the craftand the Association.

The book ends with some notes onfuture directions and the personal reflectionsof more than 20 woodturners, somefamous, some not, who experienced firsthand, at least part of the movement thathas led to the craft as it is now.This is a book for anyone who has aninterest in woodturning. Although centredon the growth of the American Associationof Woodturners, it provides awealth of subsidiary information to givewoodturners of today an overview of thetrends that have shaped their craft and anindication of their place in history.