Nina MacLaughlin spent her twenties working at a Boston newspaper, sitting behind a desk and staring 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 story of becoming a carpenter.