5 Knitting Memoirs You Didn’t Know You Needed

Knitting isn’t just about colorwork and cables.
It’s also about the stories woven through every stitch.
The joy of crafting together with friends.
The pain of losing a loved one.
The ridiculous lengths we’ll go to just to finish a sweater.

That’s why books about knitting hit different.
They share the deeper reasons we do what we do.
And remind us there are others crazy enough to take a suitcase full of yarn.

The five we’ve picked aren’t pattern books.
They’re epic sweater adventures…
personal reflections on slowing down…
and even survival stories.

So settle in with your needles close by.
These five books prove knitting is never just knitting.
They remind us that every story, like every stitch, connects us to memory.

The Power of Knitting: Stitching Together Our Lives in a Fractured World by Loretta Napoleoni

Revealing recent discoveries in neuroscience, The Power of Knitting offers proof of the healing powers of knitting on our bodies and minds. Breaking through societal barriers, even nursing broken hearts, and helping to advance cutting-edge science, knitting is still a valuable instrument for navigating our daily lives.

Knitting Pearls: Writers Writing About Knitting edited by Ann Hood

In this follow up to Knitting Yarns, two dozen writers write about the transformative and healing powers of knitting. These personal stories by award-winning writers celebrate the moments of loss and love intertwined in the rhythm, ritual, and pleasure of knitting.

Slow Knitting: A Journey from Sheep to Skein to Stitch by Hannah Thiessen

Like the “slow food” movement, Slow Knitting encourages knitters to step back, pare down, and celebrate the craftsmanship of their work. In five chapters centered around the tenets of slow knit­ting—sourcing carefully, making thoughtfully, thinking environmentally, experimenting fearlessly, and exploring openly—Hannah Thiessen challenges knitters of all skill levels to view their practice in a new way.

Sweater Quest: My Year of Knitting Dangerously by Adrienne Martini

For Adrienne Martini, and countless others, knitting is the linchpin of sanity. As a working mother of two, Martini wanted a challenge that would make her feel in charge. So she decided to make the Holy Grail of sweaters—her own Mary Tudor, whose mind-numbingly gorgeous pattern is so complicated to knit that its mere mention can hush a roomful of experienced knitters. A wooly Julie and Julia, this epic yarn celebrates the profound joys of creating—and aspiring to—remarkable achievements.

Hooked: How Crafting Saved My Life by Sutton Foster

Whether she’s playing an “age-defying” book editor on television or dazzling audiences on the Broadway stage, Sutton Foster manages to make it all look easy. How? Crafting. From the moment she picked up a cross stitch needle to escape the bullying chorus girls in her early performing days, she was hooked. Cross stitching led to crocheting, crocheting led to collages, which led to drawing, and so much more. Channeling her emotions into her creations centered Sutton as she navigated the significant moments in her life and gave her tangible reminders of her experiences.

Conclusion

I LOVE seeing how others weave yarn into their lives.