3.06.2012

Book Review: Extra Yarn.


AB and I love knitting and we also love to find our names as characters in books. (i.e. The Doll People by Ann M. Martin with main characters named Tiffany and Annabelle.)

So, it comes as no surprise that we are in love with the picture book Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett. It is a book about knitting and the heroine is named Annabelle. What more could you ask for?

There are many reasons to love this book. First, Jon Klassen's illustrations are fantastic. Second, the villain is an archduke. My kid now know the word "archduke" and uses it while playing. Score. It's just such a fun word. Third, it features yarn bombing. That's right, adorable little Annabelle becomes a guerilla knitter thanks to her extra yarn and desire to prove a naysayer teacher wrong. Last, but definitely not least, it teaches a great lesson about honoring your gifts. You may look at someone else's talents and envy them. It may seem that their process is simple and ordinary.  You may attempt to imitate, but it just doesn't work. It doesn't look right. It doesn't feel right. Why? Because it's not your. Like the archduke,  you have stolen the extra yarn only to wind up staring into an empty box. Instead, find what makes you truly happy  and you have found your own gift that looks right, that feels right, that works.

Knitting + heroine named Annabelle + happy ending = a favorite book.










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