How to Build Impossible Things
Lessons in Life and Carpentry
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How to Build Impossible Things
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Narrated by:
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Paul Bellantoni
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By:
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Mark Ellison
About this listen
Brought to you by Penguin.
Wildly irreverent and beautifully warm, this is a story about practice, competence and failure, told through tales in a world most of us never see.
Life is worth regular examination. I have found a great deal of meaning in learning to make things. Each of us has tidbits of understanding that others might appreciate were we to share them. As a carpenter building high-end homes for New York City's richest, I work on multi-million dollar projects every day. People come to me when they want the impossible. Most are ill conceived; many are inadvisable, some are downright dangerous. But when I'm able to craft something glorious, it's magic. Yet in every project, without fail, things go wrong.
Glamour, luxury and refinement are products of a flawed, human process, of missed deadlines, overrun budgets, heated tantrums and scrapped blueprints. Throughout my career I have observed, erred, learned, finessed, apologised, and resisted the urge to say I told you so. I offer these tales from the trade in the hope that others might find them amusing, instructive and inspirational. There are many good reasons to work. Here are a few of them.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2023 Mark Ellison (P)2023 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
What listeners say about How to Build Impossible Things
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Peter Braga
- 24-10-23
Fun, good first book
Good fun. A decent first book.
Reader’s voice is tremendous.
About 40 percent of the book doesn’t need to be there.
The author has too many ideas and cares too much about his readers. If he didn’t worry if we’d learn something valuable from his book, it might have been funnier or more engaging. But it is good for what it is.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- AZ767594
- 16-07-23
Fantastic
Practical experiences in art and life in general. I really enjoyed not only the story but also the reading. Touches several aspects of life. Really enjoyable.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- anne
- 03-10-23
Brilliant funny and profound
Subjects close to my heart and experience on a different scale, but reflective of life and philosophy.
Humorous and moving.
Very self-effacing, excellent listening and reading .
Would listen again !
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- ColdDeadHand
- 04-03-24
Thoughtfully written.
An honest tale that shows there is peace and opportunity in work that you can enjoy. The author provides a great deal of insight into how he works as a human too. The book is reflective and thoughtful. Performance is excellent.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Tiago Lazaro
- 05-09-23
Self-indulged piffle
Written with the self aggrandisement of a tradesman who fancies himself interesting. And the reading was as pretentious. Refund please.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Star
- 25-10-23
Didn’t finish it.
Dull. I wanted more detail on the actual work and craft. Didn’t enjoy the extra polemics on art and architecture.
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