Stitch 'n Bitch Nation
With its spiffy prose and no-fail instructions, Stoller's 2003Stitch 'n Bitchmade it doable—easy, even—for gals (and the occasional guy) to knit up a cool bag or a happening scarf in a few nights. The book's sequel is a bit like the follow-up to many great movies: it draws you in, but doesn't pack anywhere near the punch of the first one, probably because the first one set the bar so high. Still, Stoller should have no problem packing the theaters, as it were: readers who've mastered most of the lessons inStitch 'n Bitchwill flock to it. Its opening section explains the complicated but worthwhile process of changing a pattern to suit your tastes: shortening sleeves, changing necklines, using a heavier or lighter yarn to create different effects, etc. Stoller uses her signature sharp, matter-of-fact voice to demystify these potentially confusing processes. After these lessons, the book takes a 180, launching into a smorgasbord of patterns for knitted designs ranging from the beautiful (sweaters like the Spiderweb Capelet and Clover Lace Wrap) to the hackneyed (a Two for Tea teapot cozy or been-there-done-that Roller Girl Legwarmers). Vignettes covering Stitch 'n Bitch knitting clubs from Arlington, Va., to Seattle, Wash., add a community feel, and the photos of models sporting knitwear superimposed on quintessential American backgrounds (Mount Rushmore, an urban Chinatown) add to the book's "knitting for the masses" spirit.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.