The Audiobook Is Definitely Better
4.5 out of 5 stars
Before reading this I wouldn’t have considered myself a “maker”. I’m not really good with tools or making things with my hands, but I do create things online. I blog, I write, and I do design work as well. It was interesting that early in this book Savage covers this (“I don’t make, I code”) where he is telling someone if they are making something then they are a maker even if it’s on a computer. I liked that a lot.
The whole book was a “how to” but more of a how to not screw up like he did. He admittedly rushed things and did things differently than a lot of makers and took a different path. Sometimes it worked out and sometimes it didn’t. He went into detail on the how and why and it was a fascinating look behind the curtain.
I was a huge fan of Mythbusters and I follow Adam’s Tested platform as well from time to time. I’ve listened to some of his podcasts (the first one I remember listening to reminded me of this book a lot). He’s just a fascinating and interesting person. He’s a “celebrity” but also just a real person. He’s down-to-earth and interacts with his fans at Cons and other events.
Overall, I thought that listening to this book really gave it an extra edge. He included anything I might have missed from the book but listening to him tell the stories, events, and mishaps first hand really makes a book like this.
Book Description:
MythBusters’ Adam Savage – Discovery Channel star and one of the most beloved figures in science and tech – shares his golden rules of creativity, from finding inspiration to following through and successfully turning your idea into reality.
Adam Savage is a maker. From Chewbacca’s bandolier to a 1,000-shot Nerf gun, he has built thousands of spectacular projects as a special-effects artist and the cohost of MythBusters. Adam is also an educator, passionate about instilling the principles of making in the next generation of inventors and inspiring them to turn their curiosity into creation.
In this practical and passionate guide, Adam weaves together vivid personal stories, original sketches and photographs from some of his most memorable projects, and interviews with many of his iconic and visionary friends in the arts and sciences – including Pixar director Andrew Stanton, Nick Offerman, Oscar winner Guillermo Del Toro, artist Tom Sachs, and Chef Traci Des Jardins – to demonstrate the many lessons he has picked up from a lifetime of making.
Things like: don’t wait until everything is perfect – in your workshop or in your life – to begin. Plan with pencil and paper. Sweep up every day. Learn from doing. Share your toys. There is an exact tool for every task (Adam probably has four of them in his wondrous shop), but if you need to pound in a nail and all you have handy is a skill saw – hammer away. The most important thing, always, is just that you make something.
Every Tool’s a Hammer is sure to guide and inspire you to build, make, invent, explore, and most of all enjoy the thrills of being a creator.
Every Tool's a Hammer by Adam SavageNarrator: Adam Savage
Length: 7 hrs and 45 mins
Published by Simon & Schuster Audio on May 7th 2019
Genres: Memoir
Format: Audiobook
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