Annie and the Swiss Cheese Scarf

When I found out that Alana was writing her own knitting related children's book I was beyond thrilled. As many of you know, I'm a kindergarten teacher and a big part of my day is spent reading picture books. Alana very kindly sent me a copy of the book to review. 

When it arrived, I cuddled up on the couch and read through Annie's story. The illustrations are so beautiful and as a knitter, I think we can all relate to Annie in some way. But to really get a good review on the book, I shared it with a different audience: my class. We read the story of Annie together. At the end of the story I asked, "What do you think we can learn from Annie?" Some of the responses were:

Knitting takes practice.

Try your best.

Be patient.

Take your time.

If you practice something you can get good at it.

A cat and a mouse can be friends.*

*A most interesting reply. Hey, they're five.

I followed this up by asking the children to share what their favorite part of the story was.

When she got better with the scarf.

The boy with the bubble gum. He looked funny.

When she showed her friends to knit.

Finally, I asked, "Does this remind you of anything?"

When my mom made me my blanket. 

My grandma knits.

When my dad taught me how to plant flowers.

When my mom knits. I think she knits. She plays with string for sure.*

*Another good one.

I was really pleased that the students enjoyed the story so much. One of my kids shouted out afterward, "Now are we going to learn to knit?!" Unfortunately, I teach half day kindergarten so there isn't much time for that. 

I think this is the perfect book to share with the little someone in your life. As you can see, there is more to the story than just knitting. You can find the book here. 

My favorite thing about the book? Besides the great illustrations, the fact that both Annie and her mother are wearing Never Not Knitting designs really made my day!

Visit Annie's website here.

Visit Alana's website here.