{"product_id":"wood-work","title":"Wood Work","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat happens when you walk away from security to build a life with your hands?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn January 2019, former white-collar professional Steve Smith stepped into the snowy Maine woods with a simple, risky goal: to see if he could make a living using nothing but an axe.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith no formal training and no safety net, Smith began hand-hewing logs into timber beams, learning a heritage craft once essential to survival and now nearly forgotten. What began as an experiment became six years of punishing labor, financial uncertainty, and personal transformation as he built a thriving timber business—and discovered a different measure of success.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eStructured around the turning seasons of the Maine woods, \u003ci\u003eWood Work\u003c\/i\u003e traces Smith’s physical and philosophical journey away from corporate life and toward a livelihood rooted in craft, land, and community. Drawing on his upbringing in a religious cult and a lifelong search for meaningful work, he reflects on what is lost when modern life separates us from making—and what can still be reclaimed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eClear-eyed, humble, and deeply reflective, \u003ci\u003eWood Work\u003c\/i\u003e is a meditation on purpose, resilience, and the enduring human need to shape something real with our own hands.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Islandport Press","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":53391594258705,"sku":"9781939017888","price":18.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0928\/6890\/3185\/files\/cover_17745ec2-066f-474c-8c8e-7d08049ecf06.jpeg?v=1776866923","url":"https:\/\/www.stablebookgroup.com\/products\/wood-work","provider":"Stable Book Group","version":"1.0","type":"link"}