Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitting Workshop (1981)

Everything necessary to learning how to design your own garments, along with a generous helping of commentary and lots of fodder for your imagination.

A very interesting book dealing more with the science and theory of knitting rather than actual patterns. It provides the knitter with guidelines for knitting basic pieces, so that one can think independently and not necessarily be tied to any specific pattern, but potentially customize any pattern for a perfect fit.

This book has some funny moments too; the author's humor certainly shows. For example, when giving instructions for creating an afterthought pocket for a sweater, the second paragraph starts: "DON'T HAVE HEART FAILURE." (This is because you will have just deliberately cut a hole in your knitting.) this lightheartedness goes a long way in a book that is basically your grandmother spewing all of her knowledge at you, should you be lucky enough to have a grandmother able to do such a thing.

I recommend this book for a person who's been knitting for a while and is maybe looking for ways to go beyond published patterns. I think it might scare a newby away from the craft forever. ( )

I'm not grading on the curve for knitting books--if I did, this would be a 5 star manual--but, say, compared to Middlemarch or even The Language of the Night I can't quite bring myself to go there.

That said, it's terrific--kind of makes you want to knit everything just to give it a whirl (if only knitting a shawl could be finished in a few short evenings!)--and if you did indeed work your way through it you'd come out a very competent knitter.

It's splendidly updated with colour illustrations and more explicit patterns. Well worth it!

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). ( )