Odds are this is the first time the chainsaw and the coffee table book have been combined. That pairing’s not a bad thing. And neither is this book. Given the chainsaw’s importance in helping to open up – or, if you’re environmentally inclined, desecrate ­– the vast forests of Canada, it’s instructive for us to learn about the tool by which that all was done.

The 85-year evolution of the chainsaw from hulking, two-man metal behemoth to lightweight, one-man plastic machine is fascinating. The chainsaw has undergone many changes in shape and form, yet it remains a noisy, dangerous machine. In terms of efficiency, however, the modern chainsaw is infinitely better than the so-called “misery whip” – the old, two-man cross-cut saw.

Over six chapters, a detailed, three-page timeline, and hundreds of colour photos, David Lee traces the technological advancement of the chainsaw, the expansion of the market for wood, and, among other interesting developments, the role played by the Second World War in the history of the ’saw. Germany was, at the time, the world’s premier producer of the machines. Hitler’s forces enjoyed state-of-the-art chainsaw technology, thanks to Stihl. Allied forces took note and, in 1944, bombed and destroyed both a factory and its head office.

In the story of the ongoing struggle between man and nature (not to mention between man and man), the chainsaw makes for a surprisingly colourful chapter.