This book is head and shoulders about anything else out there on pen turning. After reading the Sing and Cripps primers I ordered this. There is no question that this book should be the one you read. It is well organized, clearly written and gives multiple ways to perform each step in the pen making progress.It starts with an historical discussion which may or may not suit your tastes, but then goes into very good detail about the equipment, supplies, wood selection, kit types, finishing products, glues etc that are available and what is required/suggested based on your needs.Next it goes through the making of a basic pen in good detail with the minimalist type supplies etc. Each subsequent section details a new type of pen, but also adds different ways to do each of the basic procedures and details different equipment that can be used. Through this process, the reader gets a good understanding of what is out there and how to use it. There is then a section on alternate materials and how they differ in the treatment required to use them. Then a section on decorating and variation in styles. This is followed by a tips and tricks section, which will help solve some of the common problems, as well as, provide tricks to improve quality and speed. Finally there is a very good gallery with a multitude of styles from multiple contributors.If you can only buy one book, it would be foolish to go with any other. You will find yourself refering back to it often and will save yourself a lot of money and headaches through the advise the authors give.