Customer Reviews

Knitting America: A Glorious Heritage from Warm Socks to High Art

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I had such high hopes for this book. There are not that many books that look at knitting from a historical perspective, and this one promised to do so with lots of illustrations. Unfortunately, the writer's credibility as a serious historian is lost on the first page when she states that the English settlement at Jamestown, Virginia did not last and moves on to Massachusetts as the locale of the first permanent English settlement in America. Any child in elementary school in America would recognize that this is just wrong. Jamestown was indeed the first permanent English settlement in America and continued to thrive for many years after its establishment. I was left baffled--did she confuse Jamestown with the Roanoke Island, North Carolina colony from the 16th Century that did not survive--and how could her editors not catch this glaring error on the first page of text? Notwithstanding this serious and very basic historical error, I decided to muscle on through the book. The remainder of the book, while written in serviceable prose, could never be described as engaging and certainly not entertaining. And I can't say much for her scholarship, which seems to consist mostly of having looked at a lot of commercially published pattern books through the 20th Century and deducing what she thinks knitting was all about from those. Most of the illustrations come from these commercial pattern books as well. Finally, this book has no serious chops as a pattern book--it doesn't include any pattern after WWII and, as another reviewer has indicated, provides no insight to a modern reader or knitter on how to interpret the early 20th century patterns, which are written very differently than modern patterns. All in all a disappointment--not a good history book, not a good overview of knitting as a cultural, historical or social phenomenon, not a very good coffee table book and certainly not a very good pattern book.

I bought "Knitting America" after reading a brief description of the book. Thinking that this would be "interesting" I ordered it. It arrived yesterday and the minute I opened the box I was struck by the weight and size of the book. I instantly knew this was not just "another book on knitting". THEN I opened the book!!!

This book is RICH in history with stories, illustrations and vintage patterns. The details held in this book exceeds anything I could have imagined. I have read the first half of this book and I am finding that the outstanding writing literally takes you back in time. In today's world where we live such a considerable easy, soft life then to be taken back and live the colonial and pioneer days on these pages and imagine how exhausting and trying the men and women of that era had it. The strength and stamina being able to knit for family and friends for the need of warmth and the giving selflessly of their time. Bartering their knitted wares for food and supplies after knitting what the family would need to get them through winter.

The story of the elderly knitter that knitted over 300 pairs of socks for soldiers during the Civil War.....

This book will warm your heart, give you a sense of intense pride in the knitters before you who through their stories and craft give you a stronger tie to your own family heritage. The stories on these pages will surely feed your soul.

You will not just be happy in having this book as part of your collection, you'll TREASURE it.

I ordered this book thinking that it might be a well-researched history of knitting, offering insight into how the times affected the necessity or pleasure of home knitting. Sadly, this is not that book. It does have lots of amusing reproductions of period advertisements and a variety of historical patterns that you might want to make yourself. You will need to be an experienced knitter to do so, since there are no basic instructions for the novice. Hopefully you will have a knitting granny nearby who can get you started. There is no glossary of knitting terms, either, so unless you are familiar with terms like "fulling the wool" you may not understand some of the references. While there is an appendix of sources, it is difficult to tell where in the book these references are cited, so if you're looking for a definitive history, this is not the book for you. As the author strolled through historical periods, I had hoped for more insight into how knitting reflected current society. There was a bit of that during the WW period, but frankly, I could have learned as much from a period movie about the home front. If you look forward to lots of pictures of yarn advertisements through the ages, then this is the book for you. They are abundant and well-reproduced. If you are looking for meaning based on scholarly research or in-depth exploration of how knitting reflected various historical moments including modern artists, then you should look elsewhere.

In her introduction to Knitting America, author Susan Strawn quotes one of her predecessors, Richard Rutt, in bemoaning the fact that very little information is available concerning the earliest history of knitting in America. Strawn's book does little to expand the historical record, but it is a fun overview of nearly four centuries of this not-so ancient craft (compared to weaving, for instance). The section on the first American knitters spans a mere 21 pages, and much of that space is taken up by photos. The picture Thomas Jefferson's monogrammed slippers shows one of the few extant pieces actually made in the colonies, while most of the others came from Europe. An anecdote from the writing Susan Rowlandson, who was abducted by Indians, tells how she carried and worked upon her knitting during her captivity.

Once the narrative moves into the Victorian period, both factual information and historic examples abound. and by the turn of the twentieth century, readers are treated to a wealth of interesting material. Perhaps the book's greatest contribution is in its wealth of documented photos of ads, magazines, patterns, tools, and the social aspects of knitting. Also included are 20 historical patterns adapted to modern terminology and materials.

Not a book to be read straight through from cover to cover, but to be browsed and enjoyed for its celebration of knitting.

This book is not only a gorgeous coffee table quality book with rare and vintage pictures, but it's historic wealth is impeccable. One reviewer unfairly said the history was wrong because the author said the Jamestown settlement wasn't successful. Well, in the next page, the author explains what she meant. Settlers learned from the Jamestown settlement that the climate wasn't balmy and needed to bring knitted hats, socks etc. So many froze to death in Jamestown...

This book is written in an easy to understand style I appreciated. The author spent just enough time on each topic and then moved on, making it a page turner.

I highly recommend this book to any knitter. As someone who knits prayer shawls, it made me realize that things stitched in love really do help people. The story of the soldiers in the Civil War being encouraged by a knitter attaching a note to the item they made for a total stranger, and how it helped the moral of the troops moved me...literally...to keep knitting things for loved ones or total stangers.

What can I say? This book is a treasure. If you love knitting and are also a history buff, this book is for you. The chapters tell the history of knitting in America in chronological order, tying it deftly with events in American history. The illustrations, vintage photos, and vintage patterns allow you to travel back in time, so to speak, to see and feel how knitters did their craft, why they knit, and how they felt about it. Many of the stories are very touching and reflect knitting sentiment today--historical women knit for the same reasons we do and got the same pleasure out of it. It is also interesting to see the photos of vintage knitting pieces conserved in museum collections. For example, you can see how sock shapes and styles have changed over the years, or how sweater shapes have changes. Most touching to me were the dozens of historical photographs of women knitting. These were real women, with their lives, issues, experience of their times, and their knitting--which could either be a chore or a pleasure. Knitting tied women together (or should I say, "knit women together"?). These ladies were just like us. The vintage ads for knitting needles, patterns and materials were also of great interest, not only for their content, but for how much these items cost in past times (often pennies!). The text is charmingly and clearly written, and the stories the author tells just carry you along. She even interjects poems and songs of the times that dealt with knitting. All in all, this is a fabulous book. If you love knitting, and want to feel the kinship that ties all knitters together over centuries, don't miss this book.

This book went way beyond my expectations about the history of knitting in America. The pictures are stunning and the author went to great lengths to pack this book with knitting history and American history itself! If you don't have it...put it on your wish list and let everyone you know that you would love to have this book!

It was a fun read but also very informative. As a collector of vintage knitting pattern books, it also helped me put my small collection into a broader historical context. It really did make me want to grab my needles and start knitting something, not because of the patterns included with every chapter, but because of the feeling that I was part of a much bigger American phenomenon. It was that feeling of community with other knitters past and present that seemed to permeate the book that intrigued me the most. My twenty-something daughter and one of her friends read the book right after I did and were also fascinated with it, so you could say that it is an intergenerational treat, suitable for every knitter you know-- and those who may be just about to become knitters!

great book, if you are into US knitting history, this is a beautiful book for you. Lots of pictures and interesting info, the author has gone to some trouble to check her sources and debunks some knitting myths - Martha Washington amongst them. not so many patterns and not patterns that are not easily available elsewhere - but great info and great photos/images. I would suggest an important addition to any knitting history section of a library (personal or public)

"Knitting America: A Glorious heritage From Warm Socks To High Art" by Susan M. Strawn (Assistant Professor in the Apparel Design and Merchandising department of the Dominican University, River Forest, Illinois) presents an illustrated history of knitting in American from the pilgrims to the pioneers, from slaves to First Ladies, from the Amish and the Shakers to the Native Americas. Of special note are the chapters dedicated to 'the Knitting Doldrums of the 1920s', 'The Families that Knits Together', and 'Knitting Redefined'. Enhanced with extensive Endnotes, References, and a comprehensive Index, "Knitting America" is a unique and informationally impressive needlecraft history that will be of special interest to all dedicated needlecrafters, and should be a part of every community library American History reference collection.