Crocheting with Lucy Loop

by Karen D. Thompson, Tony Smith (Illustrator)

Would you like to teach a child the joys of making something special with their own two hands? Lucy Loop is here to help! Now, children ages five to ten years old can learn the super-fun art of crocheting by simply reading one delightful story. The first children’s crochet pattern storybook, Karen D. Thompson’s engaging, easy-to-read introduction to crocheting is a terrific way to teach a young person a new skill, and to spend quality time with them. With a cast of colorful characters, as well as vibrant illustrations by Tony Smith, Crocheting with Lucy Loop is sure to inspire any child to stitch, hook, and have a great time. Down in the town of Yarnsville, a pretty piece of yarn named Lucy Loop dreams of becoming a beautiful crochet item. Luckily for her, The Great Hook wants to help her do just that. When Lucy is picked for a crochet project, he guides the way to crocheting something that is warm and wonderful. As the project continues, Lucy learns to craft a chain, a single crochet, and create a new row of single crochet stitches, and make it come together as a marvelous fabric. The story was inspired by the author’s own experience teaching children to crochet, who discovered that repeating the simple narrative helped children remember the stitches. From there, Crocheting with Lucy Loop provides children with everything they need to know to get started with crocheting, including words on safety with crochet tools, holding the hook, and explaining important crocheting terms such as slip knot, chain stitch, and more. The book also features a pattern at the end of the book to serve as the child’s first project. Playful and humorous, Crocheting with Lucy Loop will give children the tools they need to learn a lifelong skill and provides adults with an ideal activity to share with the children in their lives. It’s an entertaining, educational way to create something of beauty with a growing child.

38 pages, Paperback

First published April 20, 2012

Reviews

[Marie Segares]

Crocheting with Lucy Loop is a storybook on a mission to teach crochet to children aged six to ten years. The book’s author is Karen D. Thompson, a CGOA Master of Basic Stitches, a crochet teacher, and the owner of Hooksations, a traveling boutique specializing in crochet creations.

The book opens with a story many of us crocheters are all too familiar with – the yarn stash. Lucy Loop is just one of many yarns waiting to be summoned forth to become a project. As Karen writes, “Lucy hoped and hoped that one day she would be picked too. Lucy wondered which fabric she would become. Maybe a nice warm hat or a long scarf! A sweater or blanket would be a dream come true.”

Eventually, Lucy’s patience is rewarded when she is picked up and works together with The Great Hook to be crocheted into a scarf.

After the story ends, Karen shares some tips for getting started crocheting with a child, along with a simple scarf pattern. It’s obvious from her tips that Karen has successfully taught children to crochet before. Karen’s enthusiasm is clear on every page of the book, and I think that will transfer to the adult and child reading along.

Although the book is self-published, the printing standards are high and it looks just like any other picture book you might see on a child’s shelf. The font is large and easy to read, and the pictures are colorful and fun. There are a few minor grammatical errors which will, of course, only be noticed by the adult reading the book.

The real highlights for me of Crocheting with Lucy Loop are the illustrations by Tony Smith, which use vibrant colors and bold facial expressions to bring the characters to life, and the tips that Karen shares for teaching children to crochet. This book would be a great gift for a young child you want to teach to crochet, or for a parent or grandparent who is struggling with teaching their child to crochet.

Full disclosure: A free review copy of Crocheting with Lucy Loop was provided by Hooksations. Although I accept free products for review, I do not accept additional compensation, nor do I guarantee a positive review. My reviews are based entirely on my honest opinions.