Knitting from the Top by Barbara G. Walker: (10/10)
What's it about?
This book by Barbara G. Walker explains the construction of sweaters, skirts, ponchos/capes, trousers, and hats, that are all knit from the top down. It doesn't contain patterns in the usual sense of the word, but instructions for making your own patterns - or more accurately, for knitting sweaters without making a pattern beforehand. The idea is that you start with a number of stitches based on a measurement and your gauge, but then just block or press the garment as you go and try it on. The instructions are not short abbreviations or tables like a regular pattern, but long explanations on what to do at certain points and why. It has line drawings of the different styles. The book was first released in 1972, so it doesn't have the colour photos and fun layout we're getting used to these days. On the other hand, it doesn't have the babbling about how "hip" knitting is, and it doesn't try to leave grandmothers out of the game.
When is this book useful? And what is so great about it?
When you want to design something for yourself but you hate maths, you really won't have to do much with this method. If you tend to knit your sweaters too long or too short or with the waist shaping in the wrong place, it's easier to get it right this way. If a sewing analogy is permitted, this is like draping a garment on the body, instead of trying to alter that impossible paper pattern to your measurements. It's a nicely self-centered way of constructing a garment: there isn't a "standard" to which you measure up or don't measure up, you just make the garment to fit your own body directly. If you are a little intimidated by the design process, Barbara Walker's style of instruction is very encouraging, and she really does make it easy to make garments that fit. It has lots of different collar, sleeve, and neckline styles for the sweaters. It's really well-priced. The line drawings clarify the instructions well for people like me who can't visualize very well.
Isn't there anything wrong with this book? It can't be right for everyone!
There are of course situations where a book like this simply doesn't work. If you don't have regular access to the intended wearer of the garment, you'll need the measurements anyway, so it won't matter if you knit it bottom up or top down. She doesn't mention the use of short-row-shaping for womanly curves, or steeking for colour patterns. Other than that, the only "bad" thing I can think of is limited availability (it seems to be available only from American online bookstores, which of course isn't a problem for most people here). Oh, and it has the ugliest cover of all my knitting books, so if you're sensitive to ugliness, keep your eyes closed until you've opened it.
To sum it up, I think this is a useful book for anyone who isn't content with ready-made patterns. The flaws are more than compensated by the tremendous amount of information you get in only 120 pages. It's worth a 10.