Impulse Purchasing

Dear Kay, Wow wow wow. So many books! Thanks to all for sharing what you're reading right now. I find all this totally fascinating. There are five randomly chosen winners in our contest; wish I could be Oprah and give away 360 copies of Knitting Yarns: Writers on Knitting. Here are the books these folks are reading. Does it get any more ecumenical than this?

JULES M.: I am reading a book called Do-It-Yourself-Therapy, I kid you not. It was a gift from my sister, is she trying to tell me something?   HELENE WILLIAMS: I’ve got a stack of 7 books that I’m reviewing—not sure if they’ll all be read/written about on time! Current title in my hand is Bound in Venice, by Alessandro Marzo Magno—non-fiction about publishing in the 15th and 16th centuries, when Venice was the center of the book world. Hundreds of wonderful tidbits about the people, the time, and the place. Ah, Venice! (But now, a couple of rows on a shawl. . . .)   LISA O: I’m always reading more than one book at a time! Currently it’s Allegiant by Victoria Roth (Divergent Series) and The Yarn Whisperer by Clara Parkes. I’d love to read this new book . . .   KAREN IN MCLEAN: Red Strangers, by Elizabeth Huxley, is in my lap at night. This book is a must read for authors as Huxley has recounted the colonization of Kenya from the perspective of some of the Kikuyu tribe (still in Kenya according to recent travelers), starting with the occasional visit by a trader. Even the tempo of life is captured, much like the slow tempo of Middlemarch, another village’s story. I should feel like I should apologize for rattling on, but no such luck—it is a great book and has been reprinted. Cheers to all.   DIANE: I’m reading The Solace of Open Spaces by Gretel Ehrlich, along with Molecular Biology for Dummies (I’m not kidding). A knitting book would make a great triumvirate, don’t ya think?

In knitting news, I am having my regular bout of euphoria over the arrival of a new volume of Brooklyn Tweed's Wool People. In this Book Six, Jared Flood's photographs are somehow even more atmospheric than ever. Go linger with the look book. The Shawangunks have never looked so painterly, so shawangunky. The designers in this issue are a mix of favorites and names new to me. Just when I think I know so much, I find a whole new human designing cool stuff, like Dianna Walla.   I totally bit and bought Carol Feller's Carpino. And just in time: there's a batch of Madeline Tosh Sock, colorway Ink, that is sorely overdue for its destiny. Of course, I was a skein short, so as with all stashbusting projects, I had to go buy more. Love, Ann [Edited to add!] PS So funny: I thought I'd never seen the patterns of Dianna Walla, but the fact is, I've already MADE half of one of her patterns, the sublime Pine Bough Cowl. I need to finish this cowl right NOW. It's so great.