August 2012

I enjoyed this book a lot more than I expected to.  As an experienced knitter on my way to become a Master Hand Knitter, I don’t ignore beginner’s books, but I don’t generally find anything new in them.  This one impressed me by not leaving out all the ‘extra’ stuff that a lot of books think beginners don’t need.  By focusing only on the knit stitch (not even purling!), she can include all kinds of little touches and details that make a knitted garment outstanding.  I mean things like how to start and end a row, or exactly how to make a buttonhole that will work well for a certain garment.

I actually found it because I was looking on Ravelry.com for a certain type of jacket I wanted to knit.  I found something pretty close, which turned out to be the Einstein Coat in this book.  I’m about a quarter of the way through an enjoyable garter stitch project, which I never thought I would do!  The plain, flat fabric of garter stitch turns out to be the best way to show off the crazy colours of variegated wool I bought at fire-sale prices from KnitPicks.

I recently bought myself a Kobo Vox, and I’ve read several books on it without having figured out how to track them.  I’m not even sure when I’m reading a “book”, to tell the truth, which makes things confusing.

For example; this turned out to be something that I’d read before, because it’s one of the four in Alcott’s “Behind a Mask”.  However, I read it again and enjoyed it.

At under 20,000 words I’m not sure if it’s long enough to be called a novella, but it was longer than a short story, I’d say.

On the shelf at my local library.  Interesting introductory material, including motivation for teens and results of a study that showed how yoga can benefit them.  I didn’t find the poses to be relevant for me, and I couldn’t interest my household teen.

I skimmed the introductory material and tried a few of the workouts.  It’s good stuff, but a little too “easy does it” for me.  It can safely be done by anyone of any age and fitness level… and although I’m out of shape, I am not a 90-year-old who has never exercised!

On the shelf at my local library.