5 Books to Help You Knit and Crochet Like a Geek

One of my favorite things to do at the library is to just browse the shelves. My usual go-to is the fantasy/sci-fi section, but I also always check out arts and crafts, where I sometimes find real gems for patterns or even entire new crafts to learn! Two of my main hobbies are knitting and crocheting, and I know I share these with many fellow geeks, so I want to highlight for you five awesome geeky books that I found in my local library system.

Anoka County is my home library system, so these books are all from there, specifically. But I know that other counties’ libraries also have some good options for anyone looking for some geeky crafting resources! And don’t forget that you can request library materials from other library systems through interlibrary loan.

Libraries are great resources for geeky knitting and crochet pattern books!

1. A Crochet World of Creepy Creatures and Cryptids

I admit that I’m a complete noob when it comes to amigurumi—I’d never made one before checking out this book! You can see my first (mildly wonky) attempt in the top image. There are a lot of patterns in this book, covering quite a lot of critters and legends.

Page Street Publishing

2. Geek Knits

There is a wide range of projects in this book, from Captain America sweaters to TARDIS scarves to D20 pillows. And since there’s such a variety, there are a lot of options for different skill levels. I really like the Poison Ivy wrap, and lace is something I’m more comfortable with in knitting. The model for each project is an actual celebrity, though this is a blade that cuts both ways: There are cool guys like René Auberjonois and Teryl Rothery, but then there’s a recently accused criminal who shall remain nameless. Just a quick warning on potential triggering names and faces.

St. Martin’s Publishing Group

3. Fairytale Blankets to Crochet

I am a blanket goblin. Every couch and chair in my house has at least two blankets on it, for all my blanket cocoon needs. So of course I needed to check out the crochet blanket book. While many of these are sized for kids, I think it would be relatively simple to resize them for an adult. Though of course if you’ve got kids in your life, a lot of these would make really cute gifts, too!

Search Press

4. The Fellowship of the Knits

I have to admit most of the projects in this one are intimidating to me, but they are so tempting. Especially the Rohan mitts! I think I still need to work up to doing any colorwork knitting. This book has some really nice patterns, beautifully showcased in the photography. Folks with more skill or confidence than I have should definitely take a peek at this one.

Reel Ink Press

5. Wallace & Gromit Cracking Crochet

There are a lot of amigurumi books available in the library, but this one stood out to me because I love Wallace & Gromit and I need that little Shaun the Sheep. You crochet him a little sweater! It’s adorable!

Search Press

Pattern books are great for finding projects when you’ve graduated from scarves or other flat, straight objects. They’re not always the best if you are a complete beginner at crochet or knitting, since they often assume a certain level of knowledge, but once you’ve got the basic stitches down and you feel like leveling up, there are so many geeky pattern books out there!

Go forth, head to your library, and see if there’s something there to tickle your fancy.