"Mr. Popper's Penguins" by Richard and Florance Atwater

Suggested Book:

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florance Atwater

Suggested Pattern:

• Mr. Popper's Penguin water bottle cozy by Laura Nelkin (Free)
  
  

"My Rotten Life" by David Lubar

Suggested Book:

"My Rotten Life" by David Lubar

Suggested Patterns:

• Awesome Zombie Hat by Jane Gracier
  
  
  
• Cyber Zombie by Christen Hayden found in Creepy Cute Crochet (Approx book cost: $10.17)
  
  
• I (heart) zombies scarf by Zabet Stewart
  

This book has been reviewed on NPR.

Suggested Book:

The Neddiad: How Neddie Took the Train, Went to Hollywood, and Saved Civilization by Daniel Pinkwater

Suggested Patterns:

• Turtle found in World of Knitted Toys by Kath Dalmeny
  

• Sheldon by Ruth Homrighaus (Free)
  

"There's a Hair in my Dirt! A Worm's Story" by Gary Larson

Suggested Book:
Very cute book that talks about circle of life. Some people may be put off by it, just a warning. My 7 year old loves it when we read it to her.

There's a Hair in my Dirt! A Worm's Story by Gary Larson

Suggested Pattern:

• Eisenia the Earthworm by Daniel Yuhas (Pattern Cost: $6.00) You can knit a whole family of earthworms - perfect!
  
  
  
• Earthworm by Hansi Singh (found in Amigurmi Knits: Patterns for 20 Cute Mini Knits)
  
  

"Coraline" by Neil Gaiman

Just saw this movie with my daughter and thought it'd be nice to pair . . .

Suggested Book:

Coraline by Neil Gaiman

Suggested Patterns:

• Coraline Star Sweater by Jenn Jarvis (Free)
  
  
  From the movie:
  From the pattern:
  

• Coraline Gloves by Tika Belle (Free)
  
  A photo from the movie:
  A picture of the mitten:
  

"Flamingos on the Roof" by Calef Brown

I love Calef Brown books! This was also reviewed on NPR.

Suggested Book: Flamingos on the Roof by Calef Brown

Suggested Patterns:

• Flamingo Beach Party (221x) by Debbie Radtke (Fiber Trends) (Pattern Cost: $6.00)
• Alta M. Flamingo by My Pretty Chis (Crochet, Free)
  
• Always . . . Flamingo Dish cloth by Enid Danforth (Free)

"Thirteen Clocks" by James Thurber

I just stumbled into a podcast by Daniel Pinkwater and Scott Simon ala' NPR fame. They now have a segment discussing children's books.

Suggested Book: Thirteen Clocks by James Thurber
Suggested Patterns:

• A Felted Eye Patch (Link to PDF) by Crafting Jen (Free)
  
• Grinch Gloves by Susan B. Anderson (Free) - Only glove pattern I could find that sized for children - just leave off the grinchy parts. (In the story, the Duke has gloves)
• Lap blanket - Most of the book talks about how cold everything is. A nice quick lap blanket could be a nice pairing for this book. There are so many lap blanket patterns (Ravelry Link) out there. I'm not going to make any suggestions.
  

"Charlotte's Web" by E.B. White

Suggested Book:

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White

Book Description (from Amazon): In his classic and beloved novel, E. B. White tells the memorable story of Wilbur, a little pig who becomes famous with the help of his clever friend Charlotte and their chatty animal neighbors. As the runt of the litter, Wilbur struggles to survive from the very beginning. Fern fights her father, Mr. Arable, to raise Wilbur and nurse him to health. Fern succeeds and Wilbur moves to the Zuckerman farm, where he learns the true meaning of friendship from the wise grey spider Charlotte. When it becomes apparent that Wilbur is being well fed for a reason, Charlotte and Wilbur are determined to foil Mr. Zuckerman's plans. With the help of Charlotte and her "terrific" webs, Templeton the rat, and other colorful barnyard friends, Wilbur becomes the prizewinning pig of the County Fair and the most famous pig ever.
Lessons of friendship, loyalty, and truth bind this story together and show readers that friends come in all shapes and sizes.
Illustrations by the artist Garth Williams bring to life these lovable characters. He is also the illustrator of E. B. White's Stuart Little.

Suggested Patterns:

• Charlotte A. Cavatica Scarf by Rebekkah Kerner from AntiCraft (Free Knitting Pattern)
  

(Photo by Rebekkah Kerner)

• Squiggles the Pig Cloth by Rhonda K. White (Free Knitting Pattern)

• Stuffed Pig by Judy Head (Free Knitting Pattern)


• Lola Curly the Pig by Rebecca Hatcher (Free Knitting Pattern)

"Captain Underpants" by Dav Pilkey

Captain Underpants
Originally uploaded by civilgrrl

I have a 7 year old nephew and had no idea what to make him for his birthday. Boy gifts for me are difficult to figure out. I have a sister and a daughter, so boyhood is something I know nothing about.

On one of my visits, I noticed him reading Dav Pilkey's Captain Underpants. So I had to make one.

One year later, my nephew still carries around his CU! What better endorsement for knowing it was a great gift.
Pattern: CivilBitch (That's my informal website)

Suggested books: Any of the Captain Underpants books by Dave Pilkey