Difficult to review this book as only a snippet of the projects were included. One of the key things on reviewing a book like this would be assessing how many of the projects I would actually choose. So overall I cannot say whether or not I would recommend this book. The white cable jumper included was very nice though, and I like the pictures.

Knits from Northern Lands is a beautifully curated collection of knitted projects by Jenny Fennell. Due out 2nd Nov 2021 from Interweave, it's 128 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats.

The eARC provided for review contains an excerpt from the final release copy with several patterns included. The instructions and tutorials are clearly written and up to Interweave's high standard. The aesthetic is Northern European, with classic patterns inspired by Scandinavia, Ireland, and the Hebrides. The included patterns are very well photographed in color and include all the charts and written directions. Project tutorials include specific yarns with yardages as well as general yarn types so readers can make necessary substitutions.

The projects are beautiful. They're well curated and several types of knitwear are represented. The excerpt only includes 5 projects (several are repeated, probably a formatting glitch), but there seems to be several plus sized and unisex projects. Most of them are accessories and as far as I could see, there aren't any children's projects (the table of contents was not included in the excerpt).

Four stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Knits from Northern Lands by Jenny Fennell really intrigued me, and I want to try a few of the patterns in it. This review will be a bit mixed due to how the formatting was on the Kindle though.

First of all, I loved the patterns included. I was expecting more patterns then there were though. When I went to add this book to my list of preorders, I noticed there are quite a few more patterns included in the final copy. I am very excited about that. I also enjoyed the little write ups with each of the patterns.

The formatting on the Kindle was awful, and originally I was going to give this book a much lower rating, as much as I loved the patterns. However, when I tried the PDF all the images, illustrations, and labeling were much more clear, and they made a lot more sense.

I was unable to test these due to some issues within the Kindle format. The PDF copy was a little more clear, but I think some more information on sizing would be especially helpful.

This book is definitely geared to more advanced students with the techniques involved. I am just starting to learn how to do many of these skills. So, it is the perfect time for me to purchase this book.

I received an eARC from Penguin Random House through NetGalley. All opinions are 100% my own.

3.5 stars

Gorgeous patterns, decently detailed instructions, & stitch charts provided for the motifs & colorwork have tempted me to buy a print copy of this when it comes out. Note that this book is best suited for knitters with some experience.

[What I liked:]

•There is a nice variety of patterns, including shawls, hats, scarves, blankets, mitts, a pillow cover, etc. There is also a nice variety of traditional “Northern Lands” techniques/styles used in the patterns, such as Aran, Fair Isle, & Shetland.

•Disclaimer that I haven’t actually tried to knit any of these yet, but I do want to order some wool & try either the blanket or shawl out (need to wait for wool to go on sale!)

The patterns all look to require some skill level & confidence in following detailed patterns (colorwork, motifs, cables, etc.). However, the difficulty level is stated at the start of each pattern, along with standard gauge info, recommended needle sizes, wool required, etc.

•The patterns have text instructions, row by row, with a key for stitch abbreviations. What’s also nice is stitch charts are provided, which helps you visualize what it’s supposed to look like as you go. For some patterns, a sequence of sketch diagrams show stitch-by-stitch how the needles move & the yarn wraps.


[What I didn’t like as much:]

•Just an FYI, but the ARC copy only includes 5 of the 20 projects included in this book, so I couldn’t review all of them.

•Also FYI, the stitch charts wouldn’t load in the kindle E-book copy, so I had to use the digital editions app to view them. Not sure if the official copy can or can’t be viewed fully on kindle, but the single review that’s currently on Amazon says they had to use a Fire, & couldn’t use kindle.

•To beginning knitters, be aware that these patterns do not contain details on knitting techniques such as blocking, using cable needles, casting on & finishing off, changing colors, etc. If you don’t have experience with these skills, I recommend you find a supplemental text with good pictures & instructions for them.

[I received an ARC ebook copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. Thank you for the book!]