Alanna Okun

I thought this was going to be a light, humorous read about crafting. One of those books you like just because you can relate.

In reality, Okun wrote more of a reflective memoir (or tried to, anyway) than a collection of crafting essays, and her attempts at humor completely missed the mark for me. She went on and on about how she always has to be in a romantic relationship, and I just felt sad for her.

This book also felt very "written," for lack of a better word. It reminded me of essays I wrote in high school where I was required to use a certain number of "interesting" adjectives, verbs, and adverbs, and use very particular styles of sentence openers, and so on.

There is a lot of language in this. There are several references to sex, though no graphic details are revealed. There are references to teenage sex and teenage drug use.

One excerpt I did like:

"If I read one more article that begins with a line like 'Knitting: it's not just for grandmas anymore!' I'm ripping it up with a felting needle.... Crafters are told that we have to have permission to indulge in our pursuits, bestowed by the Whatever Tribune or blahdiblah.com, because otherwise all we should be is embarrassed by them. That's tacitly what these types of clunky, thoughtless trend pieces do: assume a beginning and an endpoint. They deny roots and they erase nuance, variance, and the lives of actual, real-life people who have spent their passion and energy learning how to create the world they want." (p 19-20)

I did also like the essays about her mom and her sister, but for the most part, this was just "meh." I would not recommend it.

(Side note: She has a lot of anxiety and deals with bouts of trichotillomania, which was a point of interest to me because those things run in my family.)… (altro)

nonfiction; knitter's memoir - short essays
Okun talks about friendships, grief, relationships, anxiety/panic attacks, family, and other topics, but mostly she talks about knitting. And even if you enjoy such talk, there's surprisingly little interesting to say about knitting. This might work fine as something to listen to while doing your needlework (if you are the type of person who likes to hear other people talk without having to volunteer anything to the conversation), but I didn't find it terribly engaging or even relatable--and I think it even kind of added to my anxiety, a little bit. Not for me, but I'm sure there are folks out there with nicer things to say.… (altro)

I couldn't resist the title, which was one of the essays in this fairly short, very personal memoir. I was expecting something light and a bit shallow, and was actually pleased that the author explored her relationships with family, friends, and boyfriends through her knitting, embroidery, and crocheting - all of which she calls "crafting." I'm not a knitter, but I could relate to her enthusiasm over various yarns - both color and texture, and her satisfaction with completing a project. I have embroidered and crocheted, but I think anyone who has contemplated their personal relationships would appreciate the author's experiences with her mother, her siblings (especially her sister), boyfriends, and particularly her grandmother who taught her how to knit.

I found many of her observations to be poignant, and the book in general to be thoughtful and genuine.… (altro)