Today I decided to review two self-published books I've recently had the pleasure of reading. These books are not on Amazon and not in the big chain stores so you might not run across them by accident. Therefore, I hope I pique your interest a little here...
The first is One Bead at a Time by Robin Atkins. You may remember I got to see Robin's beadwork up close at the ASCH conference last month. While I was there, I picked up her book One Bead at a Time. I started to read it this last week in the midst of all kinds of family crises with sick relatives, I thought I would look at the pretty bead pictures and soothe my soul. But as I opened the cover, Robin's gentle spirit began to glow from the pages. From the choice of font, to the compact size, to the lovely pictures the book was so inviting that I began to read. Folks, all I can say is, everyone should have this book whether you are a bead person or not. The book is about Robin's own journey into beads as a medium for self-discovery and healing. But it's not a story about her so much as it's an example of how you can apply the same principles in your own life through your own creativity. If you are one of those people who is now thinking "I don't go for all that touchy feely mumbo jumbo" you need this book even more! It's gentle spirit is uplifting without being saccharine, it's full of practical advice about how to work improvisationally and let your juicy soul bubble up (something I have trouble with), it's about having a dialogue with yourself that is creative and meaningful to you. And if all that doesn't grab you, then you should get it for the pictures alone. You can't get this book from Amazon, it's a self-published book. You can get it from Robin's website though. (Don't fall for any "out of print" rumors. )
My second review is another self-published book, with a completely different approach. This one is titled Selbuvotter, biography of a knitting tradition by Terri Shea and it's brand new on the market. This is a book about the patterned mittens of Selbu, Norway. The first part of the book is an interesting history of the tradition of the black and white patterned mittens and gloves. Amazingly we find out it's a whole knitting tradition started by a single person and we know who she was! Terri studied 17 historic mittens from Annemor Sundbo's great archive of knitting and 14 that made their way across the ocean to the Seattle area and ended up in the Nordic History Museum. She has charted patterns for all of these mittens and it is a treasure trove of patterns and lore. This is a book I will be scrutinizing for years. This book is also not on Amazon, but you can order directly from Terri at her website.
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