Crochet Monsters: With More than 35 Body Patterns, You Can Mix and Match Options for Thousands upon Thousands of Possibilities!

This quirky guide from Lapp (Crochet Impkins) shows how to crochet customizable fantasy creatures. As in her previous outings, Lapp presents instructions on how to make various body shapes, limbs, tails, and horns and leaves crafters to decide how to mix and match these parts to create their own amigurumi monsters. For instance, readers might sew bugle-shaped ears and a forked tongue on a “blob body” reminiscent of a Pac-Man ghost, or attach gangling arms and spiral horns to a body that consists of one large eyeball. Many of the parts are drawn from nature, such as the spider legs, axolotl head flaps, rabbit ears, and walrus tusks. Others nod to the world of fantasy, including a dragon tail and bulbous clawed limbs that call to mind Maurice Sendak’s wild things. Lapp assumes readers will have some familiarity with crocheting; she provides a glossary that briefly describes some of the lesser-known techniques but otherwise skips instruction on the basics. The monster designs are uniformly cute, featuring oversize plastic eyes or tiny tongues protruding from jutted-out lower lips, and the ability to choose which pieces to combine will appeal to readers who like to personalize their crafts. Amigurumi crocheters will eat this up. Agent: Christi Cardenas, The Plains Agency. (July)