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How Things Are Made: A Journey Through the Hidden World of Manufacturing
An illuminating journey through the world of manufacturing and its seismic influence on our lives, from internationally renowned expert Tim Minshall
We live in a manufactured world. Unless you are floating naked through space, you are right now in direct contact with multiple manufactured products, including furniture, technology, clothing, and even food. And yet the processes by which these things appear in our lives are virtually invisible. How often do we stop to think: Where do the things we buy actually come from? How are they made, and how do they make their way into our hands?
The answers can be found in How Things Are Made, which traces the surprising paths taken by everyday items to reach consumers, from design to creation to delivery. Expert Tim Minshall takes us on a journey through the manufacturing world, from the smallest job-shops to mega-factories, from global shipping hubs to local delivery at your door, revealing the inner workings of the system that runs 24-7-365 to make and deliver the things we need—or want—to live our daily lives, including cars, cakes, phones, planes, drugs, and medical devices. Along the way, he explores how we can improve the fragility of our global manufacturing system and the impact it has on the natural world, revealing a path to a truly sustainable future.
Brimming with energy and lively examples, How Things Are Made maps the awe-inspiring global system of manufacturing that enables virtually every aspect of our existence. By making sense of this surprising and hidden world, we are able to make better choices for ourselves, our communities, and the planet.
We live in a manufactured world. Unless you are floating naked through space, you are right now in direct contact with multiple manufactured products, including furniture, technology, clothing, and even food. And yet the processes by which these things appear in our lives are virtually invisible. How often do we stop to think: Where do the things we buy actually come from? How are they made, and how do they make their way into our hands?
The answers can be found in How Things Are Made, which traces the surprising paths taken by everyday items to reach consumers, from design to creation to delivery. Expert Tim Minshall takes us on a journey through the manufacturing world, from the smallest job-shops to mega-factories, from global shipping hubs to local delivery at your door, revealing the inner workings of the system that runs 24-7-365 to make and deliver the things we need—or want—to live our daily lives, including cars, cakes, phones, planes, drugs, and medical devices. Along the way, he explores how we can improve the fragility of our global manufacturing system and the impact it has on the natural world, revealing a path to a truly sustainable future.
Brimming with energy and lively examples, How Things Are Made maps the awe-inspiring global system of manufacturing that enables virtually every aspect of our existence. By making sense of this surprising and hidden world, we are able to make better choices for ourselves, our communities, and the planet.
320 pages, Hardcover
Published May 6, 2025
106 people are currently reading
4644 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
July 10, 2025
It’s amazing how often Tim Minshall can connect the topic of manufacturing to the topic of baking.
One of the most compelling threads throughout the book is the idea that manufacturing isn’t just something we need to clean up for the sake of the planet, it could actually be part of the solution to climate change. Minshall shows how rethinking how we make things, choosing better materials, and redesigning supply chains can have a transformative environmental impact.
Tim Minshall’s How Things Are Made is a smart, funny, and surprisingly eye-opening look at the hidden world of manufacturing. It’s detailed, but not too detailed, making complex processes feel accessible and even fun.
I’ve read some Vaclav Smil books before but often found myself getting bored. This is a much more readable, engaging, and less dry version of that kind of big-picture thinking, without sacrificing insight.
In short, it’s fascinating, entertaining, and oddly uplifting. Five stars! :)
One of the most compelling threads throughout the book is the idea that manufacturing isn’t just something we need to clean up for the sake of the planet, it could actually be part of the solution to climate change. Minshall shows how rethinking how we make things, choosing better materials, and redesigning supply chains can have a transformative environmental impact.
Tim Minshall’s How Things Are Made is a smart, funny, and surprisingly eye-opening look at the hidden world of manufacturing. It’s detailed, but not too detailed, making complex processes feel accessible and even fun.
I’ve read some Vaclav Smil books before but often found myself getting bored. This is a much more readable, engaging, and less dry version of that kind of big-picture thinking, without sacrificing insight.
In short, it’s fascinating, entertaining, and oddly uplifting. Five stars! :)
May 8, 2025
A good overview of how things are made and the processes associated with manufacturing including supply chain, logistics, consumerism, supply/demand, and much more. The author also speculates on the future of manufacturing. He takes us back to the Industrial Revolution and walks us through the progress of manufacturing. With apt examples he takes us on an engaging journey to the world of manufacturing and gives us a good look at the hidden recesses and circuitous routes the products we buy and order online take before they show up on our doorsteps. This was a four star read and I definitely recommend this interesting and enjoyable book. Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.
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July 27, 2025Interesting romp through today's manufacturing world.
Breezy writing style - but it has BOTH footnotes AND endnotes OMG. Really should have stuck to one or the other. (For the most part, the footnotes are fun and the endnotes are citations, but sometimes there's non-cite content in the endnotes...)
The book was published in April 2025 - so was completed well before Trump took office again. I do wonder what edits Minshall will need to make to accommodate the current tariff fiasco and/if manufacturing will be redistributed as a result.
Breezy writing style - but it has BOTH footnotes AND endnotes OMG. Really should have stuck to one or the other. (For the most part, the footnotes are fun and the endnotes are citations, but sometimes there's non-cite content in the endnotes...)
The book was published in April 2025 - so was completed well before Trump took office again. I do wonder what edits Minshall will need to make to accommodate the current tariff fiasco and/if manufacturing will be redistributed as a result.
July 13, 2025
How Things Are Made: A Journey Through the Hidden World of Manufacturing by Tim Minshall (book cover is in image) takes the listener on a journey through the end to end supply chain, exposing how it works and its fragility. Using natural language makes this volume easy to understand and accessible for all who want to understand the basics of supply chains. I strongly recommend this book as an introduction to those who want to understand this topic.
Thank you Harper Audio Adult and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. All opinions are my own.
#HarperAudio
#HowThingsAreMade
#TimMinshall
#SupplyChain
#Logistics
#Distribution
#Business
#yarisbooknook
#NetGalley
Thank you Harper Audio Adult and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. All opinions are my own.
#HarperAudio
#HowThingsAreMade
#TimMinshall
#SupplyChain
#Logistics
#Distribution
#Business
#yarisbooknook
#NetGalley
Read
May 26, 2025Huge news! After reading this book, I am an engineer.
The author does a great job explaining the world of manufacturing to someone who knows nothing about it. His point is to not only explain it, but to inspire you that it is manufacturing itself that will birth a more sustainable manufacturing industry. We are all much more connected to the process of making and moving stuff than we would like to think.
The author does a great job explaining the world of manufacturing to someone who knows nothing about it. His point is to not only explain it, but to inspire you that it is manufacturing itself that will birth a more sustainable manufacturing industry. We are all much more connected to the process of making and moving stuff than we would like to think.
September 22, 2025
Pleasant, swiftly moving book with plenty of mild humor to make the reader happy. But there just wasn’t that much there - he never gets very deep into any subject, and there’s a little more repetition than I would like. A good book, perhaps, if you simply don’t know anything about manufacturing and want to learn a bit.
August 20, 2025
It was ok, but it's more a series of essays on consumer goods, most of it isn't about how things get made.
May 1, 2025
A perfectly adequate primer to the world of supply chains and manufacturing. I confess that I am now struggling to recall any particular fact or example the book discussed, however. Take that as an indictment of my memory, or of the book's staying power, as you will.
Thanks to NetGalley and Ecco for the ARC.
Thanks to NetGalley and Ecco for the ARC.
September 5, 2025
I needed a break from what I was currently reading (Race and the Greening of Atlanta, which is excellent but my eyes needed a break from the small font of academic presses and the sheer density of the information) so I put it down to read this book, which had received good reviews.
Going from a book that took me too pages a minute to read to one where the font size was large enough to read comfortably, I was shocked by how quickly it moved. But there was one problem. I felt like I was reading a book written for middle school aged children. I'm not belittling such books. Many are classics, but I felt like I should've been warned that this was in as yet unnamed category of Young Adult Non-Fiction. And I read YAF all the time for a break.
I learned about manufacturing and terminology but it just felt... dumbed down.
And then I finished Part I and got to Part II. I still feel like Part I didn't need to be so simplified, but it was necessary to lay the groundwork for what came next. I found the rest of the book to be satisfying and addressed to a more mature audience (still high school seniors or early college level) but the style shifted from "Let me explain this to you like you're a child" to "Let me explain this to you like you are an adult that knows enough now to have the conversation we need to be having.
And that conversation was fascinating. It will, or should, make you look the world and how what we consume gets made and gets us differently. It's worth the read. I'd rate it higher but even seeing the necessity of Part I and how and why it was written that part was a slog.
Really good, ultimately.
Going from a book that took me too pages a minute to read to one where the font size was large enough to read comfortably, I was shocked by how quickly it moved. But there was one problem. I felt like I was reading a book written for middle school aged children. I'm not belittling such books. Many are classics, but I felt like I should've been warned that this was in as yet unnamed category of Young Adult Non-Fiction. And I read YAF all the time for a break.
I learned about manufacturing and terminology but it just felt... dumbed down.
And then I finished Part I and got to Part II. I still feel like Part I didn't need to be so simplified, but it was necessary to lay the groundwork for what came next. I found the rest of the book to be satisfying and addressed to a more mature audience (still high school seniors or early college level) but the style shifted from "Let me explain this to you like you're a child" to "Let me explain this to you like you are an adult that knows enough now to have the conversation we need to be having.
And that conversation was fascinating. It will, or should, make you look the world and how what we consume gets made and gets us differently. It's worth the read. I'd rate it higher but even seeing the necessity of Part I and how and why it was written that part was a slog.
Really good, ultimately.
July 29, 2025
I won a paperback advance reader copy of How things are made in a goodreads giveaway. I was excited to read it because I do not know much about manufacturing and wanted to know more and I also liked the cover of the book.
The book talks about how things are manufactured, the logistics of the manufacturer getting all the parts together to make products and how manufacturers figure out what we want among other things.
Some things from the book that I remember are the transition from manufacturing gas powered cars to electric, I learned that jet engines in passenger planes had sensors in them and that information goes to engineers while the plane is in the air, the author also got to a bakery. I am sure there are other things I found interesting that I am forgetting but, these are the ones I can remember right now.
My favorite chapter was chapter 8. Survival. Where the author talks about the fact that Cement is a big polluter and how people are tying to make it less polluting. That chapter also talked about food and fashion waste. The author wrote about Jeans and a company that is trying to make Jean production use less water.
one thing that I had never thought of before is that a kitchen in my house could be a factory. I thought a factory had to be in a building somewhere else and that nothing in my house could be a factory or manufacture anything. Turns out a kitchen manufactures meals.
So I thought how things are made was a mostly interesting look at manufacturing and the things that companies have to go though to get products to me as a consumer.
The book talks about how things are manufactured, the logistics of the manufacturer getting all the parts together to make products and how manufacturers figure out what we want among other things.
Some things from the book that I remember are the transition from manufacturing gas powered cars to electric, I learned that jet engines in passenger planes had sensors in them and that information goes to engineers while the plane is in the air, the author also got to a bakery. I am sure there are other things I found interesting that I am forgetting but, these are the ones I can remember right now.
My favorite chapter was chapter 8. Survival. Where the author talks about the fact that Cement is a big polluter and how people are tying to make it less polluting. That chapter also talked about food and fashion waste. The author wrote about Jeans and a company that is trying to make Jean production use less water.
one thing that I had never thought of before is that a kitchen in my house could be a factory. I thought a factory had to be in a building somewhere else and that nothing in my house could be a factory or manufacture anything. Turns out a kitchen manufactures meals.
So I thought how things are made was a mostly interesting look at manufacturing and the things that companies have to go though to get products to me as a consumer.
October 20, 2025
Once upon a time, my dad supervised the night shift at a local TORO factory. I got to go there for "Take Your Daughter to Work Day" and was exposed to automation, workflows, tolerances, etc. His resume included skills like "warehousing" and "shipping and receiving." I wish he was still alive so we could read this book together and talk about it. It would've been at a good reading level for him--not a dense scholarly monograph but something approachable and well-organized. I feel like Minshall's target audience was undergrads or curious members of the public.
I do feel like I learned some things from this book, like that your kitchen and a hospital can both be considered factories, that jet engines might still belong to their manufacturers even if they're installed in another company's plane, and that there are still small factories doing their work on paper. I feel like he spent waaaaay too much time on the history of the digitization of manufacturing. I had already heard about fish being caught in Scandinavia, shipped to China for processing, and then shipped back to Scandinavia for sale :/ and I'm definitely going to double-down on repairing and buying secondhand (although, at some level, that "enables" others to buy lots of stuff new), but I'm afraid the examples of sustainable manufacturing he shared are still all too rare.
I do feel like I learned some things from this book, like that your kitchen and a hospital can both be considered factories, that jet engines might still belong to their manufacturers even if they're installed in another company's plane, and that there are still small factories doing their work on paper. I feel like he spent waaaaay too much time on the history of the digitization of manufacturing. I had already heard about fish being caught in Scandinavia, shipped to China for processing, and then shipped back to Scandinavia for sale :/ and I'm definitely going to double-down on repairing and buying secondhand (although, at some level, that "enables" others to buy lots of stuff new), but I'm afraid the examples of sustainable manufacturing he shared are still all too rare.
April 22, 2025
Thanks Ecco Books for the gifted ARC book.
I am a STEM geek, so I knew going into this book that there was a high probability of it being a hit for me. No surprise, I absolutely loved it! Its readability is very accessible, making it a great choice for a wide audience. Already into engineering? Great! Does the thought of science and technology scare you? No fear!
Minshall breaks down the mind-boggling world of manufacturing in an engaging manner without being condescending. That’s a big thing that I look for in academic and academic-adjacent writing. There’s nothing worse than an author having an “I’m so much smarter than you” tone. Minshall’s writing is fun, showing his passion and desire to educate. I had a hard time putting this down and kept interrupting my spouse to tell him tidbits of what I was reading.
Manufacturing is complex. There’s certainly a lot at play when it comes to environmental impacts, sustainability, and the fragility of manufacturing systems. HOW THINGS ARE MADE is definitely a timely read and illuminates the importance of our choices, both individually and on the global scale. Lots to think about. I highly recommend!
I am a STEM geek, so I knew going into this book that there was a high probability of it being a hit for me. No surprise, I absolutely loved it! Its readability is very accessible, making it a great choice for a wide audience. Already into engineering? Great! Does the thought of science and technology scare you? No fear!
Minshall breaks down the mind-boggling world of manufacturing in an engaging manner without being condescending. That’s a big thing that I look for in academic and academic-adjacent writing. There’s nothing worse than an author having an “I’m so much smarter than you” tone. Minshall’s writing is fun, showing his passion and desire to educate. I had a hard time putting this down and kept interrupting my spouse to tell him tidbits of what I was reading.
Manufacturing is complex. There’s certainly a lot at play when it comes to environmental impacts, sustainability, and the fragility of manufacturing systems. HOW THINGS ARE MADE is definitely a timely read and illuminates the importance of our choices, both individually and on the global scale. Lots to think about. I highly recommend!
August 5, 2025
Using specific, familiar examples like toilet paper, mobile phones, and Airbus airplanes, an engineering professor describes the world of manufacturing and trade today, the way the achievement of efficiency has ignored environmental effects, and what can be done about it.
This is very accessible writing, with explanations that a non-engineer can easily understand. The history, from the first Industrial Revolution, is smoothly summarized. The examples are personal, and they work to illuminate an impersonal and often automated world. After describing the smooth running of modern systems, he points to Covid as a turning point, revealing the flaws. He argues that manufacturing (and even health care, seeing a hospital as a factory with inputs and outputs) needs fixing and redesigning, toward sustainability and a future goal of regeneration.
Originally published in England as Your Life is Manufacture, the examples and spelling are often English but the costs have been translated into US dollars.
This is very accessible writing, with explanations that a non-engineer can easily understand. The history, from the first Industrial Revolution, is smoothly summarized. The examples are personal, and they work to illuminate an impersonal and often automated world. After describing the smooth running of modern systems, he points to Covid as a turning point, revealing the flaws. He argues that manufacturing (and even health care, seeing a hospital as a factory with inputs and outputs) needs fixing and redesigning, toward sustainability and a future goal of regeneration.
Originally published in England as Your Life is Manufacture, the examples and spelling are often English but the costs have been translated into US dollars.
March 17, 2025
Thanks to Tim Minshall, Ecco, and NetGalley for access to the Advanced Reader Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book provides an excellent high-level view of how things are made using examples we can all relate to, like a bicycle. For those who have never been into a factory, the book will provide an excellent overview of manufacturing but also shipping, logistics, demand planning, and other aspects of the process. The author does a great job making a complex topic easy to understand.
The last section of the book deals with changes needed in the global manufacturing infrastructure and how we make things to minimize and eliminate the manufacturing impact on the environment.
Well written, the book content is very accessible and engaging. The author has made this complex topic approachable and understandable for all of us. Recommended.
This book provides an excellent high-level view of how things are made using examples we can all relate to, like a bicycle. For those who have never been into a factory, the book will provide an excellent overview of manufacturing but also shipping, logistics, demand planning, and other aspects of the process. The author does a great job making a complex topic easy to understand.
The last section of the book deals with changes needed in the global manufacturing infrastructure and how we make things to minimize and eliminate the manufacturing impact on the environment.
Well written, the book content is very accessible and engaging. The author has made this complex topic approachable and understandable for all of us. Recommended.
June 6, 2025
This first half of the book is quite good, as Minshall details various types of manufacturing and logistics around the United Kingdom. Logistics are especially are quite underappreciated. Minshall shares some of the secrets, but greater depth would have been welcomed.
Especially because the latter half of the work is quite weak. Minshall decides to meander in his thoughts about challenges facing the manufacturing sector, and it's just not that interesting. Not simply because he gets caught up in the climate hype, so that is certainly one reason. More dangerously, he doesn't seem to trust the economy to sort itself out. Of course, he's an academic at British university, so we shouldn't be too surprised. But perhaps he could have read a little more Adam Smith.
Especially because the latter half of the work is quite weak. Minshall decides to meander in his thoughts about challenges facing the manufacturing sector, and it's just not that interesting. Not simply because he gets caught up in the climate hype, so that is certainly one reason. More dangerously, he doesn't seem to trust the economy to sort itself out. Of course, he's an academic at British university, so we shouldn't be too surprised. But perhaps he could have read a little more Adam Smith.
January 8, 2025
If you've ever wondered about the inner workings of everyday objects, Tim Minshall's How Things Are Made is the book for you! This fascinating read takes you on a journey through the manufacturing processes of various items, from smartphones to sneakers. Minshall breaks down complex concepts into easy-to-understand explanations, making this an enjoyable and informative read for anyone curious about the world around them.
** Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review **
** Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review **
July 25, 2025
I love this book for many reasons. First, it is wonderfully written and very easy to understand even for someone who doesn't know anything about manufacturing. Second, the author is very funny so it's also a light and enjoyable narrative. Third, it places the history of manufacturing in perspective -- starting with the early days, through the Industrial Revolution, Henry Ford, Toyota, and on to the present day of digital manufacturing. It also makes an eloquent case for why and how manufacturing can help address the climate change crisis. Highly recommend!
March 19, 2025
Manufacturing....a subject that I know very, very little about. Thanks to receiving an ARC of this book from NetGalley, I now feel that I know a little bit about it. Minshall covers the history of manufacturing, offers several examples of how things get made, and gives ideas on how to manufacture items in a more environmentally friendly manner. I found the book to be very interesting and informative. Well written and flows along in an understandable manner. I feel that I learned a great deal.
June 24, 2025
How Things Are Made is a book that takes you through the manufacturing, shipping and distribution processes that are in place for every product in our lives. This was a very informative book with all the different facets of the processes that get covered. I never really thought about how products get to me and in my hands. 4/5 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
August 30, 2025
I really liked this one! I'd never really thought about manufacturing before, so it was a totally different way to look at everything. I thought the first third was great (definitely my favorite part), but the middle third dragged a little for me, and by the last third, it was just kind of demoralizing how badly we've messed everything up and how little any one individual person can do about any of it.
September 19, 2025
This was fun! A fairly basic explanation of how manufacturing works, but as someone who does not work in manufacturing day to day, that seems like something I should be thinking about a lot more and this was a good place to start. This book is surprisingly optimistic despite laying out the terrible environmental cost of the way we make and use things today. He sees hope for the future. I could use more of that!
June 20, 2025
This book just has the tone I hate. It is sensationalizing and I feel constantly makes claims without substantiation. I am an engineer and this book is designed to wow the less informed reader. I just hate books that attempt to wow. I am not sure this book really is good for anybody. Sure there must be much better books out there to cover this subject with much more relevant information
June 27, 2025
A lovely example of science for citizens! This is such a fun book, a great mix of the history of what the world of manufacturing looks like today, how we got here, and where we could be going. The author is funny and makes dense material feel manageable. I hope we'll get a new edition in a decade or so to see how the world has changed.
July 10, 2025
An accessible and interesting exploration of manufacturing procedures, supply chain difficulties, and the future of how things might be slowly changing for the better. There's also a chunk spent on examining the effects of COVID, both negative and positive. If the topic interests you, it's worth a look; it's not dumbed down, but also far from dryly academic.
September 21, 2025
I love the UK title of this book more: Your Life Is Manufactured.
It implies more how what we make ultimately determines who we are. Which is more on point of what this fascinating book is about.
The author does a great job in including links to his website for additional resources to offer visual and video examples giving the words on the page more context.
It implies more how what we make ultimately determines who we are. Which is more on point of what this fascinating book is about.
The author does a great job in including links to his website for additional resources to offer visual and video examples giving the words on the page more context.
October 23, 2025
I listened to the audiobook which I enjoyed. This is a book I would love if all college students in business and engineering programs would read or listen. This is vital information to understanding how things are made and the impact on our economy, environment, consumers, manufactures etc. The author has an engaging way of explaining the impact.
July 18, 2025
Just as the title says, How Things Are Made takes us on a manufacturing journey explaining the complex processes involved with making the goods we rely on daily.
I used to love watching the show ‘How It’s Made’ and this book was similar, going through each stage and bringing in real life examples to help us visualize the process. It also explained why we need to start making things on a local level again both for the environment and for the economy. An important read for understanding our interconnectivity and how the things we consume arrive at our door.
Thank you to Ecco books for the physical book and to NetGalley and the publisher for the audiobook.
I used to love watching the show ‘How It’s Made’ and this book was similar, going through each stage and bringing in real life examples to help us visualize the process. It also explained why we need to start making things on a local level again both for the environment and for the economy. An important read for understanding our interconnectivity and how the things we consume arrive at our door.
Thank you to Ecco books for the physical book and to NetGalley and the publisher for the audiobook.
July 23, 2025
This book was a real change of pace for me and I have to say that I enjoyed it. I had anticipated a bore but the author made this complex subject into a fun read that didn't go over my head. Lots of information and some hope the manufacturing process can be improved.
August 3, 2025
This was a really interesting book. It was well structured with concrete examples. I recommend it to everyone; it’s good to know how we get all our stuff and how we can make the process more sustainable.
October 4, 2025
A journey through the manufacturing world to mentally reconnect us to the systems that make and deliver these prod-ucts. Two really big questions:
Why is our modern manufacturing world so fragile and so damaging to the planet? What could be done make it less fragile and damaging?
Why is our modern manufacturing world so fragile and so damaging to the planet? What could be done make it less fragile and damaging?
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews