Extra Yarn

Today, Kate shares a lovely book to inspire kids to use their hands:

My kindergarten-age daughter loves yarn. She likes the colors, the fibers, the feel, and she finds a surprising number of ways to incorporate it into her art projects and imaginative games. I find bits of yarn all over the apartment, often sticky with glue or sparkly with glitter or decorating her dolls. In the past few weeks, she has actually made the leap to being able to knit on her own -- haltingly and with lots of dropped stitches -- giving both of us the pleasure of watching her take a step toward independence and the joy of knowing a craft.
By coincidence, I recently found at our local library a copy of Extra Yarn, Mac Barnett's enchanting new picture book about a little girl who discovers a box of magic yarn that allows her to color her black and white universe with bright knitting. With deceptively simple ink-block illustrations by the wonderful Jon Klassen, Extra Yarn is a charming and affirming tale of the power of children to improve their worlds with the work of their own hands. Whether you like to knit or have never picked up a set of needles, you'll enjoy the message and the appeal of Extra Yarn.