Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Yarn Along: "A Monster Calls" and Je T'aime Hat

Yarn Along is a weekly link-up hosted by Ginny at the Small Things blog about two of the best things in life: books and knitting.

yarn along 030817

I made some progress on my Je T'aime Hat this weekend! The puppy and I had a girls' night in on Saturday evening and I got caught up on some episodes of "Grey's Anatomy" while working on my hat. I really like the way it's coming out! I think the flecked white yarn goes really well with the deep, rich Malabrigo teal. All that's left are the decreases (and most likely a white pompom) and it'll be done! (The pattern is From Norway With Love, here; there's a link to access it on the Wayback Machine in the comments section.)

My main read at the moment is Veronica Roth's new book, "Carve the Mark," which I'm really enjoying so far. It has much more of a sci-fi/fantasy bent than the Divergent series did, but that's right up my alley these days.

Today, though, I'll be reading "A Monster Calls," an illustrated novel by Patrick Ness, the March selection for the adult book club I facilitate at work. Much to my chagrin, all the upcoming books for the adult book club I inherited are young adult books -- not my cup of tea (yes, yes, I know "Carve the Mark" is YA, but that's a rarity for me). I wasn't too psyched about it until I saw the artwork is by Jim Kay, the illustrator of the gorgeous new Harry Potter books, and I thought maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all. And I'm actually (gasp!) enjoying it! It's a very quick read -- definitely one you could get done in a day. I read the first half yesterday and I'll finish it today.

11 comments:

  1. Love the hat - the colors are great. I have that edition of "Monster Calls" and need to make time before the movie comes out for rental. Glad you enjoyed your girls night in. Enjoy it while you can - puppies grow up so fast.

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    1. Definitely do! I'm really enjoying the illustrations -- they enhance the fable-like feel to the story.

      On a separate note, I'm glad to hear we're not alone in the over-the-top separation anxiety. We recorded Alohi in her crate when we went to dinner and to run errands last night, and it appears we have a loooong road ahead of us. It only recorded the first 45 minutes, but she spent almost that entire time going nuts (or stress-pooping). Poor girl!

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  2. love the hat too!! your photos are always so inspiring and cozy.

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    1. Thank you so much! I think I've been hygge-ing all these years without realizing it! ;)

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  3. Oh, oh, I love that hat! Very, very cute! And agree that this picture is soooo cozy. Makes me want to get home, get out my knitting and pour a nice cup of tea :)

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    1. Thank you so much! Don't tea and knitting just go perfectly together? :)

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  4. Glad you are finding the YA book choice not so bad. Not much fun reading something that is not your thing. I absolutely love your hat. Great choice of colours and yarn. The fleck in the white yarn softens the effect.

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    1. Yeah, with the whole "too many books, not enough time" dilemma it's been a it of a bummer knowing I'll probably not enjoy most of the books in my own book club! (I'm really hoping to find a way to work some adult books in soon.) On the positive side, I did end up liking "A Monster Calls." The illustrations made the book for me!

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  5. I love the hat so far! love those hearts and the color of the hat. I haven't read YA in such a long time now but there are probably some gems in that genre I'm missing out on now. The book's illustrations look really interesting!

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    1. Thanks, Lisa! I was planning to give the hat away (I won't have any use for it our next two years in Hawaii!) but it's just so ME that I'll probably keep it. Teal is my favorite color, and the aspen yarn reminds me of my home state of Colorado!

      YA has changed so much since I was a teenager -- it really wasn't much of a genre then. And there definitely are some gems in there (I loved "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson!), but I find that I almost never rate YA books more than 3 stars, and I've given up on contemporary YA entirely (except when forced for book club). YA books typically lack the depth and complexity, not to mention the skill of writing, of adult books. Plus, I'm twice as old as the protagonists!

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