While I used to harbor a stereotype of knitting as an elderly, Miss Marple-ish pursuit, Ann Hood changed my view. Hood’s novel The Knitting Circle, based on the unimaginable grief she experienced in real life after the death of her five year old daughter, portrays the magical, healing powers of knitting and of a community of knitters.

Of course, Miss Marple never represented the diversity of knitters and the art (yes, art) they produce.