With Christmas around the corner - I have put together a list of some books that I would love to get in my stocking and I know will not disappoint.

Taking Things Seriously: 75 Objects with Unexpected Significance by Joshua Glenn and Carol Hayes, published by Princeton Architectural Press; (August 9, 2007) Such a little unassuming book, who would think that it contains the power to make you laugh, cry, think and discuss all within a few minutes. (read the review here)

The Daring Book for Girls by by Andrea J. Buchanan and Miriam Peskowitz, published by Collins (October 30, 2007). We immediately looked through the book and it fell open at the page ‘how to paddle a canoe’. My daughter was hooked. (read the rest of what my daughter thought here)

How to Make Books: Fold, Cut & Stitch Your Way to a One-of-a-Kind Book, written by Esther K. Smith from Purgatory Pie Press, with illustrations by Lindsay Stadig and photographs by David Michael Zimmerman and published by Potter craft. This is one of those books that is a pleasure to hold and touch and you just want to keep on feeling it. (read the review here)

D.I.Y. Kids, Ellen Lupton & Julia Lupton, published by Princeton Architectural Press (website for the book and old blog). The sequel to D.I.Y.: Design It Yourself (Design Handbooks), bringing design to the home and to the family. I am impressed by the authors vision of design, using it not to sell stuff but rather to get away from the commercialization and consumerism of design and emphasize the DIY aspect of making and crafting and doing it yourself. (read the whole review here)

Hand Job: A Catalog of Type, by Micheal Perry, (see more of his work at his website), published by Princeton Architectural Press; 1 edition (August 1, 2007). I don’t look at design books from start to finish, left to right or whatever the real reading order is meant to be. This book is a delight in that regard. I can open it on any page and be swamped with some pretty cool examples of hand drawn type. Its perfect to have lying around the breakfast table for when you have 2-3minutes to have a look at it. (read the whole review here)

by Keri Smith called The Guerrilla Art Kit, published by Princeton Architectural Press. Keri in her book looks as moss art and guerrilla gardening as well as stencil art and poster art. And in her introduction, discusses why she wrote such a book and how essential guerrilla art is to our society. (read more here)

Homemade Contrivances and How to Make Them: 1001 Labor-Saving Devices for Farm, Garden, Dairy, and Workshop by Skyhorse Publishing (April 1, 2007) (First published in 1899). I love old technology, history and ingenuity and that is what this book is all about. (read all about it here)

Domiknitrix: whip your knitting into shape, by Jennifer stafford, published by North Light Books. I have to start off by saying - that I LOVE THIS BOOK. On the surface it looks like it might be just another gimmicky book. But it is not. It is a fantastic resource of knitting techniques, styles and designs. (read the whole review here)

Fitted knits: 25 designs for the fashionable knitter, by Stefanie Japel, published by North Light Books. [see Stefanie's blog and the knit-a-long for this book] This is such a beautifully presented book, and the patterns and styles are all so elegant and gorgeous. (read more here)

Stitch Dissolve Distort: with machine embroidery, by Valerie Campbell-Harding and Maggie Grey, published by Interweave Press. If you are into machine embroidery, mixed media with fabric and thread and textile design then this book is for you. (read the review here)

Animal, vegetable, miracle: A year of food life, by Barbara Kingsolver, with Steven L.Hopp and Camille Kingsolver. Published by Harper Collins. A year of food life by Barbara Kingsolver and with contributions by her husband and older daughter, with her younger daughter also playing a big part in the story. This as you can see is a family adventure into living courageously. Together they pledge to eat only food that they either grow themselves or know who did (with exceptions, such as coffee, purchasing only fair trade). (read the whole review here)

Simple sewing: Patterns and how-to for 24 fresh and easy projects, by Lotta Jansdotter, published by Chronicle books. I like this book a lot. It is fresh and simple, just as the title suggests, with projects suitable for the absolute beginner sewer and as a quick in-between project for the more advanced sewer. (read the whole review here)

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