Fully Woolly. (Planet Girl). Ellen Warwick. Illustrated by Bernice Lum. Toronto, ON: Kids Can, 2007. 80 pp., spiral bound, $14.95. ISBN 978-1-55337-798-6. Subject Headings: Knitting-Juvenile literature. Crocheting-Juvenile literature. Felt work-Juvenile literature. Grades 5 and up / Ages 10 and up. Review by Lizanne Eastwood. **** /4

excerpt:

Tired of wearing the same old shopping mall duds as everyone else you know? Don't want to be a sheep anymore? Ready to show your own sassy style? Get set to get sheep chic! What can you knit with two sticks and a piece of string? What can't you knit?! Once you've learned the two basic stitches – knit and purl – it's a wild and woolly world of possibilities. Check inside this book for cool twists on the usual suspects like hats and scarves. Plus you'll find some eye-popping stuff like wooly art to wow up your walls and knitted baubles to add some dash to your panache. But knitting's just the beginning! Try your hand at some cool crochet. It takes no time to learn the basics: you'll soon be on your crochet way. There's no looking back once you've whipped up an easy and oh-so-mod choker or 70's-inspired circle bag. Or, if you're a little needle-shy, try the two kinds of felting in here, which takes wool fiber from fluff to fabulous. Why not give a wickedly cool woven scarf or some wow-inspiring wall art a whirl? No knitting needles required! So c'mon – join the needlecraft revolution! Start flipping the pages to find all the stuff you'll need to get clicking (and hooking and needling) – easy-to-understand patterns, the basics of yarn know-how and handy tips and tricks to keep it simple and fun.

The opening remarks by Ellen Warwick really sum up the contents of this book. Activities directed to girls age 10 and up will definitely appeal. I'll start this review by saying I love the spiral bound format of this book. I think all craft books and cookbooks should be spiral bound. Being able to open the book and lay it flat while you work on your project is a definite bonus. The small format, hard cover and glossy pages make this book a joy to peruse.

     This is the fourth book in a series called "Planet Girl," and it really appeals to young women's style. I will soon be working with a group of tweenaged girls in an afterschool program, and I will definitely be using this book as well as the others in the "Planet Girl" series to stimulate their creativity.

      The author's sense of humour and wordplay was a little overwhelming at times, but it certainly didn't detract from the wealth of knowledge about needlecraft that was presented.

      "Knit bits," sidebars of needlecraft trivia and facts, are sprinkled throughout the book. Some of the knit bits get you to look at your project in a different way: turn that cute little cap into a bowl by putting it upside down and using sturdier wool that will stand up on its own. Cool idea!

      Projects are colour coded from beginner through easy and intermediate, and they are laid out in the book in that order as well. This will inspire crafters to work from the beginning through to the end of the book.

      I liked that felting projects were included. As a novice knitter, who doesn't seem to be improving with age, I was inspired to tackle the felting and weaving projects. There are also lots of great ideas for recycling swatches (catnip toys for favourite kitties) and turning leftover yarn into bangles.

      Fully Wooly allows young crafters to explore their own sense of style through 18 funky projects that will reflect their own individuality. The illustrations are clear and helpful, and becoming a needlecrafter will be easy and appealing to girls. The projects are not only wearable, carryable and giftable, they are totally doable!

Highly Recommended.

Lizanne Eastwood is a Community Literacy coordinator with the Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy, a casual library employee and a homeschooling parent of two active teenagers in Grand Forks, BC.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

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Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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