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A Reverence for Wood
Refreshingly written, delightfully illustrated book remarks expansively on the resourcefulness of early Americans in their use of this valuable commodity - from the crafting of furniture, tools, and buildings to the use of such by-products as charcoal and medicine. "One of Sloane's best books." -Library Journal.
126 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1965
42 people are currently reading
626 people want to read
About the author
Eric Sloane
100 books58 followersEric Sloane (born Everard Jean Hinrichs) was an American landscape painter and author of illustrated works of cultural history and folklore. He is considered a member of the Hudson River School of painting.
Eric Sloane was born in New York City. As a child, he was a neighbor of noted sign painter and type designer Frederick W. Goudy. Sloane studied art and lettering with Goudy. While he attended the Art Students League of New York City, he changed his name because George Luks and John French Sloan suggested that young students should paint under an assumed name so that early inferior works would not be attached to them. He took the name Eric from the middle letters of America and Sloane from his mentor's name.
In the summer of 1925, Sloane ran away from home, working his way across the country as a sign painter, creating advertisements for everything from Red Man Tobacco to Bull Durham. Unique hand calligraphy and lettering became a characteristic of his illustrated books.
Sloane eventually returned to New York and settled in Connecticut, where he began painting rustic landscapes in the tradition of the Hudson River School. In the 1950s, he began spending part of the year in Taos, New Mexico, where he painted western landscapes and particularly luminous depictions of the desert sky. In his career as a painter, he produced over 15,000 works. His fascination with the sky and weather led to commissions to paint works for the U.S. Air Force and the production of a number of illustrated works on meteorology and weather forecasting. Sloane is even credited with creating the first televised weather reporting network, by arranging for local farmers to call in reports to a New England broadcasting station.
Sloane also had a great interest in New England folk culture, Colonial daily life, and Americana. He wrote and illustrated scores of Colonial era books on tools, architecture, farming techniques, folklore, and rural wisdom. Every book included detailed illustrations, hand lettered titles, and his characteristic folksy wit and observations. He developed an impressive collection of historic tools which became the nucleus of the collection in the Sloane-Stanley Tool Museum in Kent, Connecticut.
Sloane died in New York in 1985, while walking down the street to a luncheon held in his honor.
Sloane's best known books are A Reverence for Wood, which examines the history and tools of woodworking, as well as the philosophy of the woodworker; The Cracker Barrel, which is a compendium of folk wit and wisdom; and Diary of an Early American Boy: Noah Blake-1805, based on a diary he discovered at a local library book sale. His most famous painted work is probably the skyscape mural, Earth Flight Environment, which is still on display in the Independence Avenue Lobby in the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum.
Eric Sloane was born in New York City. As a child, he was a neighbor of noted sign painter and type designer Frederick W. Goudy. Sloane studied art and lettering with Goudy. While he attended the Art Students League of New York City, he changed his name because George Luks and John French Sloan suggested that young students should paint under an assumed name so that early inferior works would not be attached to them. He took the name Eric from the middle letters of America and Sloane from his mentor's name.
In the summer of 1925, Sloane ran away from home, working his way across the country as a sign painter, creating advertisements for everything from Red Man Tobacco to Bull Durham. Unique hand calligraphy and lettering became a characteristic of his illustrated books.
Sloane eventually returned to New York and settled in Connecticut, where he began painting rustic landscapes in the tradition of the Hudson River School. In the 1950s, he began spending part of the year in Taos, New Mexico, where he painted western landscapes and particularly luminous depictions of the desert sky. In his career as a painter, he produced over 15,000 works. His fascination with the sky and weather led to commissions to paint works for the U.S. Air Force and the production of a number of illustrated works on meteorology and weather forecasting. Sloane is even credited with creating the first televised weather reporting network, by arranging for local farmers to call in reports to a New England broadcasting station.
Sloane also had a great interest in New England folk culture, Colonial daily life, and Americana. He wrote and illustrated scores of Colonial era books on tools, architecture, farming techniques, folklore, and rural wisdom. Every book included detailed illustrations, hand lettered titles, and his characteristic folksy wit and observations. He developed an impressive collection of historic tools which became the nucleus of the collection in the Sloane-Stanley Tool Museum in Kent, Connecticut.
Sloane died in New York in 1985, while walking down the street to a luncheon held in his honor.
Sloane's best known books are A Reverence for Wood, which examines the history and tools of woodworking, as well as the philosophy of the woodworker; The Cracker Barrel, which is a compendium of folk wit and wisdom; and Diary of an Early American Boy: Noah Blake-1805, based on a diary he discovered at a local library book sale. His most famous painted work is probably the skyscape mural, Earth Flight Environment, which is still on display in the Independence Avenue Lobby in the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 68 reviews
October 23, 2014
I've read this several times as a standalone, the latest as the last book in Eric Sloane's Sketches of America Past, which is actually 3 of his books in one. My review of it is here:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
This book delves into some interesting history of Colonial America. Sloane tends to deify the old woodworkers a bit too much & makes up a few fictional conversations, but it's all good as he shows just how important wood was in their lives & in so many different ways.
The last dozen pages or so are fantastic. I'm interested in identifying trees & knowing their uses in woodworking. The last section of this book is one of the best for someone new to identifying trees, filled with Sloane's wonderful sketches that quickly show identifying features. It's quick & doesn't go into a lot of detail, but gives an excellent overview.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...
This book delves into some interesting history of Colonial America. Sloane tends to deify the old woodworkers a bit too much & makes up a few fictional conversations, but it's all good as he shows just how important wood was in their lives & in so many different ways.
The last dozen pages or so are fantastic. I'm interested in identifying trees & knowing their uses in woodworking. The last section of this book is one of the best for someone new to identifying trees, filled with Sloane's wonderful sketches that quickly show identifying features. It's quick & doesn't go into a lot of detail, but gives an excellent overview.
April 20, 2017
I can't rate this objectively, because I always associate it with my father. I used to read it when visiting my parents; my Dad's not much of a reader, but he is a carpenter and owns several Sloane books. Finally I've decided to reread and review for GR....
But I do think it's a five-star book for almost everyone. It's short, fascinating, gracefully written, delightfully illustrated, and valuable. Even though I'm not a carpenter or woodsman myself, even though I have very little interest in history per se, I have been charmed this and several others by Sloane several times.
But I do think it's a five-star book for almost everyone. It's short, fascinating, gracefully written, delightfully illustrated, and valuable. Even though I'm not a carpenter or woodsman myself, even though I have very little interest in history per se, I have been charmed this and several others by Sloane several times.
January 31, 2022
Sentimental Americana nonfiction about wood. I really enjoyed it. It's short, thoughtful, and the illustrations are amazing.
February 9, 2016
In this book, Eric Sloane extols all the wondrous virtues of wood. From deconstructed barn planks, to the handles of tools, charcoal, and the living cells of trees, he loves it all. He relates many stories of how wood was used in the Americas, both by Native Americans and early European settlers.
As always, I love Sloane's appreciation for the past and longing for simplicity. One of my favorite parts is when Sloane talks about the old barn door he uses for a kitchen table because he loves the wood so much. He talks about sitting at his table, eating breakfast, and musing over all the stories the wood could tell. The scratches near the latch where a farmer must have lit a match for a pipe, the scratches of a dog jumping on the door, the nail where a wreath may have hung. It reminded me of an old table I got at a thrift store. It obviously belonged to a family with children. The wood was soft, so there were indentations from math homework done at the tables, names written on the table, and some other things. It had a lot of character and I often spend my meals wondering about the family that had previously owned the table. I very much relate to the pleasure Sloane finds in reflecting on the history of particular objects and imagining all the people who have either played a role in creating the object, or used it in one way or another.
I really like Sloane's illustrations too. They helped me understand how charcoal is made, how to identify some trees, and how a birch bark canoe is made.
Some parts were a little tedious, so it wasn't my favorite Sloane book, but still worth a read.
As always, I love Sloane's appreciation for the past and longing for simplicity. One of my favorite parts is when Sloane talks about the old barn door he uses for a kitchen table because he loves the wood so much. He talks about sitting at his table, eating breakfast, and musing over all the stories the wood could tell. The scratches near the latch where a farmer must have lit a match for a pipe, the scratches of a dog jumping on the door, the nail where a wreath may have hung. It reminded me of an old table I got at a thrift store. It obviously belonged to a family with children. The wood was soft, so there were indentations from math homework done at the tables, names written on the table, and some other things. It had a lot of character and I often spend my meals wondering about the family that had previously owned the table. I very much relate to the pleasure Sloane finds in reflecting on the history of particular objects and imagining all the people who have either played a role in creating the object, or used it in one way or another.
I really like Sloane's illustrations too. They helped me understand how charcoal is made, how to identify some trees, and how a birch bark canoe is made.
Some parts were a little tedious, so it wasn't my favorite Sloane book, but still worth a read.
April 26, 2023
ótrúleg bók um timbur og allt sem því tengist í nýja-englandi frá landnámi
August 3, 2014
I came across Eric Sloane's books when I was a teenage wanna-be author researching a book set in early America. Well, reading through Sloane's books I enjoyed the research so much I never actually got around to writing the story. His books are wonderful descriptions of everyday life in this young country, and his penciled illustrations are absolutely wonderful and informative. I collect all his books now, and pick them up when I find them.
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December 20, 2025An odd little book that interweaves local environmental knowledge, imagined historical vignettes, information on changing American tools, beautiful illustrations, and the thesis that a deep practical, material, and cultural relationship to wood is a definitive feature of the American historical experience. Sloane was a painter by trade so the history is probably mythical and shaky in its veracity.
A beautiful sort of writing that infuses knowledge with sentimentality and, as the title states, with reverence.
A beautiful sort of writing that infuses knowledge with sentimentality and, as the title states, with reverence.
January 27, 2019
This short read will give you a much greater understanding and appreciation of trees, the wood they provide, and their use in early American history. The illustrations are a big part of what makes this book so fantastic. I know someone that reads this book once a year and now I know why, and I’d like to do the same.
February 12, 2024
I picked this book up to learn more about wood and wooden tools for a woodworking class I assist with. This book is perfect for that, it’s educational with great illustrations to back everything up. But if you’re looking for a book with good story telling as well this is not the book for you. All in all, I’m glad I went through this short read. I walked away with some interesting fun facts and a better understanding of wood was used by early Americans.
October 22, 2012
Someone left a battered copy of this little gem in the bathroom of our barn/farm-house. It includes numerous easily digestible meditations and anecdotes related to our nation's historical reliance on lumber. The prose is noticeably nostalgic and peppered with pleasant illustrations. Personally, my favorite part of the book was a small reflection on barn roofing in New England, which intentionally left nails protruding in order to keep snow from falling off. The idea, apparently, was that snow was actually warmer than the winter air and would actually keep the place at a more agreeable temperature! Granted, this seems to clash with my brief experience in Vermont, where roofs consistently sat at a severe slope in order to shed snow accumulation. Then again, there were different times. I would definitely recommend A Reverance for Wood for those who are somewhat sentimental and (perhaps foolishly) romantic about rural history and living.
December 2, 2016
My five-year-old and I loved this book. We love Eric Sloane. His books feel so authentic and warm and interesting. Here are some quotes from this one:
"There's a right way to do things and a wrong way," he said. "Then there's the quick way. That's how city folk like to work, so it costs them most in the long run."
"His interest in antique art boils down to a reverence for the individuality of the past, what man once stood for, the way he lived and the thought he thought."
"Until the 1860's the farmer was hailed as the most noble and independent man in American society."
"During the period of the Civil War, the upheaval of American society resulted in much ugliness of taste. Before that time, agriculture and the preservation of tradition were a cherished pat of the good life, but from then on the philosophy of "change for the sake of change" became a dominant force in American thinking."
"There's a right way to do things and a wrong way," he said. "Then there's the quick way. That's how city folk like to work, so it costs them most in the long run."
"His interest in antique art boils down to a reverence for the individuality of the past, what man once stood for, the way he lived and the thought he thought."
"Until the 1860's the farmer was hailed as the most noble and independent man in American society."
"During the period of the Civil War, the upheaval of American society resulted in much ugliness of taste. Before that time, agriculture and the preservation of tradition were a cherished pat of the good life, but from then on the philosophy of "change for the sake of change" became a dominant force in American thinking."
November 6, 2014
Stellar illustrations and a unique historical narrative. Many lessons to be passed from author to reader in this one.
May 15, 2019
Books like this (like The Ax Book: The Lore and Science of the Woodcutter) make me feel a lot of things: peaceful for their description of the sylvan life, grateful for my own bit of woods and growing appreciation for it, sad for my own lack of knowledge and skills compared to my not-so-distant ancestors, and fearful that out of a combination of impatience and greed we have both destroyed the planet and lost a deep part of the rhythm and wisdom of life without even knowing what we lost. Sloane's book goes back in time following a particular strain of apple from England to Connecticut, along the way discussing how to date furniture/houses/barns by their component parts, charcoal production, and various trees/woods' impact on American history. A lovely book, if clearly romanticized- not every woodsman was carefully tending his patch reverently, as the clear-cutting that dates to at least the 19th century in my neck of the woods (pun intended) demonstrates.
April 15, 2024
An illustrated time capsule about the richness of wood and trees. Glad I read it.
"Wood was not accepted simply as the material for building a new nation - it was an inspiration. Gentle to the touch, exquisite to contemplate, tractable in creative hands, stronger by weight than iron, wood was, as William Penn had said, "a substance with a soul." It spanned rivers for man; it built his home and heated it in the winter; man walked on wood, slept in it, sat on wooden chairs at wooden tables, drank and ate the fruits of trees from wooden cups and dishes. From cradle of wood to coffin of wood, the life of man was encircled by it." -page 72
"Wood was not accepted simply as the material for building a new nation - it was an inspiration. Gentle to the touch, exquisite to contemplate, tractable in creative hands, stronger by weight than iron, wood was, as William Penn had said, "a substance with a soul." It spanned rivers for man; it built his home and heated it in the winter; man walked on wood, slept in it, sat on wooden chairs at wooden tables, drank and ate the fruits of trees from wooden cups and dishes. From cradle of wood to coffin of wood, the life of man was encircled by it." -page 72
July 16, 2017
Found this among my mother’s books after she past. I knew she was a master gardener, but did not realize how important tress were to her. She had dozens of tree books including this one. I read it to get closer to my mother. It is a quick read filled with pen&ink drawings of wood, wooden tools, etc. It basically provides vignettes of American forests at 100 year increments back in time. What was the forest used for and how it shaped people living in the area.
August 30, 2019
Book Review: I found A Reverence for Wood by Eric Sloane in my parents’ book collection. It’s an engaging and quirky book about... wood. The author’s knowledge of Eastern US trees and their use as tools, structural components, food and other aspects is marvelous. His illustrations are wonderful too. The book is from 1965 and has proven itself a timeless treasure. If you’re like me (and I know I am), you’ll enjoy this one.
December 29, 2020
Here the reader finds a simple text with voluminous illustrations that portray the important role wood has played in the development of our country. One of the unexpected. but delightful, features is found on page ten which shows a full page of radial sections of twenty typical American woods, displayed in full color. It's a fast, informal read even when one takes time to examine the well-rendered drawings.
Hope Irvin Marston, award-winning author of THE WALLS HAVE EARS: A BLACK SPY IN THE CONFEDERATE WHITE HOUSE, a Charlotte Award 2021 Nominee.
Hope Irvin Marston, award-winning author of THE WALLS HAVE EARS: A BLACK SPY IN THE CONFEDERATE WHITE HOUSE, a Charlotte Award 2021 Nominee.
January 20, 2020
There are a lot of good tidbits in here. Worth a read if you are a fan of the forest or a woodworker. I also enjoyed a narrative around woodworking instead of a textbook. There were a few times I raised an eyebrow and had to remember what year this book was written because there were some ideologies on woman and Native Americans that wouldn't get past an editor today.
January 2, 2021
I read this many years ago. My father was a lumber salesman and my first job was unloading railroad cars of lumber. I love the different smells of wood. My husband is a woodworker and this book gave me insight to his passions and reverence for wood. Even at age 70, we cut split and burn wood. Enjoyed the illustrations.
November 7, 2021
It's easy to imagine the past more populated with people like ourselves. I think Sloane overestimates the peacefulness and aesthetic sensibility of the early Americans, but it's easy to wish it were just as he painted it, and to try to bring that energy into your present, which is the greatest gift this book has to offer. To put you more in touch with the trees.
September 30, 2022
Trees and American history
Beautifully written appreciation of trees in early America. Not only is the text lively and informative, but exquisitely illustrated by the author. Sloane’s multiple talents included expository story telling and painting. He was clearly a person who exercised his curiosity and shared his learning with others.
Beautifully written appreciation of trees in early America. Not only is the text lively and informative, but exquisitely illustrated by the author. Sloane’s multiple talents included expository story telling and painting. He was clearly a person who exercised his curiosity and shared his learning with others.
November 19, 2025
Quick and fun read. What is it about? Wood. Specifically the historical relationship between wood and America. Lots of little tidbits and trivia, historical and woodworking. Great hand drawings to illustrate points. Handy guide to tree identification in the book. This book is exactly what the title promises.
May 22, 2017
Reading this book reminded me of being a boy and the fascination I had with woodlore and woodcraft in my youth. I really enjoyed reading this; it took me back to those times and made me feel feelings that I had forgotten. It made me feel a certain... reverence for wood.
July 18, 2021
Eric Sloan art and writing books are a wonderful exploration of rural America in the old times. Sloan's realistic drawing are beautifully executed, and his writing is unpretentious and accessible to all readers.
October 10, 2022
Loved the story like flow of the information. The book felt like listening to an old friend talking about their passion and the illustrations were beautiful and incredibly helpful. If you read only one history book per year, this should be it.
December 23, 2022
This book is a pleasant read for anyone interested in wood & things made from wood. It's a bit rambling & held together more by a general theme than by an outline. It is full of fascinating hand-drawn illustration.
December 10, 2024
Great read for any true wood craftsman
Liked all of this book
I would recommend it highly to anyone who works wood and wants to know some of the history that is not easily found
If I had an option to give it 6 stars That is what I would have given
Liked all of this book
I would recommend it highly to anyone who works wood and wants to know some of the history that is not easily found
If I had an option to give it 6 stars That is what I would have given
February 15, 2025
Interesting book - laid partially as a series of vignettes set a century apart from each, but really a nonfiction book about the influence of wood on and changes in the use of wood in American history.
May 25, 2017
Fascinating. Comprehensive. Nostalgic. Informative. Very readable.
December 26, 2017
A short introduction to the history of wood use in America. Folksy philosophy and fun anecdotes make for an easy, informative read.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 68 reviews