If I have said it once, I have said it a thousand times – the most fun thing about woodworking is how there are many different ways to get something done. And, when it comes to joinery,the options are nearly limitless.   That’s why one of my favorite books in my woodworking collection is this one – Good Wood Joints by Albert Jackson and David Day.

This book is a little older, released in 1995, and the two authors were from the UK, meaning that they used funny (for me) terms to describe different things – such as calling C Clamps G Cramps – but, I think I can interpret.

The fun thing about this book is the wide variety of joints you can use. How many? Well, there is a matrix spread across four pages offering the book’s entire array of joints with such information on how difficult the joints are to produce, how effective they are in different materials (solid wood vs. plywood vs. particle board) and if they are easier to cut with machines or by hand.

Even better, across the top of the matrix, there are drawings of different places where joints could be used, and which joints could be appropriate for the application.

Of course, each page goes into nice detail about how to cut these joints, most of them with instructions on how to cut them by hand and by machine.

Sure, you may not use all of the options in the book, but it’s good to have the options.