Nina MacLaughlin spent her twenties working at a Boston newspaper, sitting behind a desk and starting at a screen. Yearning for more tangible work, she applied for a job she saw on Craigslist -- Carpenter's Assistant: Women strongly encouraged to apply -- despite being a Classics major who couldn't tell a Phillips from a flathead screwdriver. She got the job, and in Hammer Head she tells the rich and entertaining story of becoming a carpenter.