Knitting around the world A multistranded history of a time-honored tradition

Review by Booklist Review

This is a global review of knitting's past and present, though to call it a true history would be a miscue to avid stitchers. What Nargi does, she does well: provide a documented and photographic survey of traditions and patterns, starting in the Islamic world and finishing, some 260 pages later, in Central and South America. Much information is borrowed from (and attributed to) other writers, more scholarly in their intentions; she extends beyond the predictable in her spotlight of 20 knitting artisans. Meet Veronika Persche, an Austrian native who sculpts with machine knitting, or the recently deceased Olga Alexandrovna Federova, queen of gossamer knitting (think lighter-than-air shawls). Add to those individuals major sidebars on breeds of sheep and occasional oddities (Habu Textiles, in Manhattan, is the only non-Japanese repository-store of Asian yarns).--Jacobs, Barbara Copyright 2010 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

---

Review by Library Journal Review

Knitting began in the 12th century in the Arab world but spread quickly. Nargi (Astounding Knits!) takes knitters on an around-the-world tour of traditional knitting. The history is the heart of the book, but there's so much more here, including interviews with well-known knitting experts, descriptions of unique yarns and techniques, and projects focused on each region's styles and traditions. This excellent-and very readable-reference to global knitting traditions belongs on the bookshelf of any knitter interested in the history and development of knitting. (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

---