The Knitting Diaries

A new friend passed along The Knitting Diaries (#128) after we had lunch recently and chatted about some of our favorite authors.  This book was a natural when she learned that I was a knitter, too.  This is actually a collection of three novellas by Debbie Macomber, Susan Mallery and Christina Skye, all of whom are avid knitters as well.

Debbie Macomber's story The Twenty-First Wish features Ann Marie and her adopted daughter Ellen from the Blossom Street cast of characters.  A move to a new home is big emotional transition for Ellen, but Ann Marie is having to deal with her own emotions when it comes to choosing which relationship to pursue.

Susan Mallery's story Coming Unraveled is set in Texas where Robyn Mulligan has returned home from New York City to help her grandmother through her hip surgery.  Her grandmother's yarn shop is thriving, which is more than Robyn can say about her dreams of a career on Broadway.  She's glad to be back home, but T.J., the scruffy cowboy she finds ensconced in the cozy knitting group at Only Ewe, accuses her of taking advantage of her grandmother.  Why has he taken such an instant dislike to her, and how can Robyn convince him she's in it for the love, not the money?  And why should it matter so much to her?

In Return to Summer Island, Christina Skye's heroine Caro McNeal has suffered a devastating accident in Chicago that has left her right hand and arm severely damaged.  Her grandmother takes her home to Summer Island to recuperate and work with a physical therapist in Portland, Oregon.  Caro is afraid that she will never be able to knit again, but that desire is a key to her recovery as she battles through the pain.  What she never expects is to open the door one day to a Marine who is about to be re-deployed to Afghanistan.  He's come by to pick up a painting by her grandmother, an internationally known artist.  Circumstances force Gage to leave his beloved animal companions behind at the Summer Island shelter, but the cat and dog provide a connection between Gage in Afghanistan and Caro in Oregon in a most satisfying way.  I do have to say, I've never read any of Christina Skye's work before, but the parting between Gage and his cat and dog brought a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye.  Way to go for personalizing the sacrifices each member of the armed services makes for our benefit, and making it real, Ms. Skye!

I enjoyed all three stories, and there are also three knitting patterns included, one with each novella if you're so inclined.  They did spur me on to work on my own knitting projects.  It's hard sometimes to choose whether to read or to knit.  I know some people are proponents of audio books so that they can combine both, but for me, nothing beats the act of reading and imagining the sound of the characters myself.  If you enjoyknitting and are a sucker for romances, you can't help but get tangled up in The Knitting Diaries!