Anna Katterjohn Recommends HatHeads
Knitkid's hats are whipped up nicely to Kate Jacobs's audiobooks
By Anna Katterjohn -- Library Journal, 12/17/2009
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Recommendation: HatHeads: 1 Man + 2 Knitting Needles = 50 Fun Hat Designs by Trond Anfinnsen, aka Knitkid, for its down-to-earth author and real-life models. Anfinnsen, a new, self-taught knitter, knit 200 hats in about 20 months for his friends and family in Norway. The book features 50 close-ups taken by Anfinnsen's friend Klaus Nilsen Skrudland of the recipients wearing their hats, patterns for each, and short paragraphs about the models:
"Åse is my girlfriend and, of course, the cutest and nicest person in this book.... I made her this hat in black to match her calmness, with three orange stripes to underline her strength, endurance, and patience."
"Bård is from the northernmost part of Norway, and that means that he is very down to earth, not very urban, and includes swear words in every setence.... His perfectly round, John Lennon–style glasses...inspired the circles on his hat."
It's charm city, and whoever your recipient is, he or she may just start knitting hats for you and everyone he or she knows.
Ideal recipient: New knitters looking to move beyond scarves will appreciate Anfinnsen's straightforward and casual approach. He also offers a great basic, customizable pattern for "Your First Hat" and a decreasing formula that creates a clean spiral at the top of the hat. Men who knit will find the diversity of patterns, models, and yarn colors refreshing. Nonknitters obsessed with Norway may even want this for the vivid photographs 
and personal stories.
Media Tie-in: Kate Jacobs's third novel in her "Friday Night Knitting Club" series, Knit the Season, on audio is great entertainment for those hours of preholiday knitting. Beginning knitters likely can't read while they knit, but audiobooks are even better than TV, as they let you keep your eyes on the project at all times.
