Faced with an endless supply of mass-manufactured products, we find ourselves nostalgic for goods bearing the mark of authenticity—handmade tools, local brews, and other objects produced by human hands. Archaeologist and medieval historian Alexander Langlands reaches as far back as the Neolithic period to recover our lost sense of cræft, combining deep history with detailed scientific analyses and his own experiences making traditional crafts.

Langlands is an Associate Professor in History and Heritage at Swansea University in Wales, and also one of our favorite presenters on British television. He was in several of the BBC Historic Farm documentary series, including Victorian Farm, Edwardian Farm, Wartime Farm, and Tales from the Green Valley. He's quite brilliant! (As an aside, he looks pretty good in period clothing.)

Cræft brims with vivid storytelling, rich descriptions of natural landscape, and delightful surprises that will convince us to introduce more cræft into our lives.

Softcover, 344 pages. 2017.