Complete Do-It-Yourself Manual

 By the Editors of The Family Handyman

Readers Digest      2014

528 pages     Non-fiction

The Shortlist

This is just a shout out about a great Christmas gift!  

Have you seen the recent ad for Angie's List. A father is trying to put up a swing set in the back yard. He starts in the morning and 12 hours later, it's up but it's a disaster. The implication, of course, is that it is best to find a handyman on Angie's list to do the job. At the same time, we know that a homeowner can save hundreds of dollars if he/she can learn to do their own repairs. 

The Complete Do-It-Yourself Manual is a great holiday gift for the new homeowner—or the old homeowner, for that matter. With very clear pictures, drawings, and text, all of the common household repairs are explained. I particularly liked the part about how to use common household tools. Each tool is explained, and then when you see the tool at work in the later chapters, you can refer back to see how to use the tool.

Thanks to the publicity rep, this book is going to our son and his wife--new homeowners.