New in Arts, Crafts, and Literature
Check out the new arts, crafts, and literature books we’ve added since July!
January 11, 2021
Check out the new arts, crafts, and literature books we’ve added since July!
In this list:
- Artists and art history
- Knitting and more
- Quilting
- History and inspiration
- Poetry
- Essays
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Artisits and Art History
The 99% Invisible City
A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design
Roman Mars
The creators of the record-setting 99% Invisible podcast celebrate the achievements of modern urban design and architecture, sharing the origin stories behind fundamental innovations, from power grids and fire escapes to drinking fountains and street signs.
Artcurious
Stories of the Unexpected, Slightly Odd, and Strangely Wonderful in Art History
Jennifer Dasal
Examines the colorful world of art history to reveal some of the most interesting, odd and humorous stories behind the great artists and their masterpieces, from Monet and van Gogh to Andy Warhol.
The Death of the Artist
How Creators are Struggling to Survive in the Age of Billionaires and Big Tech
William Deresiewicz
An award-winning essayist and leading critic of contemporary culture in America profiles those struggling to make a living through the arts, revealing what it means to lead a creative life today and what might be done to keep artists thriving, because we need them.
The Louvre
The Many Lives of the World’s Most Famous Museum
James Gardner
Describes the history of the Louvre, which was a clay quarry in the first centuries AD, a fortress in 1191 and a royal residence in the 1300s until finally becoming a place to display national treasures after the French Revolution.
Singular Sensation
The Triumph of Broadway
Michael Riedel
The New York Post theater columnist draws on more than 150 insider interviews to celebrate the productions, artists and movements that shaped Broadway in the years spanning Sunset Boulevard through The Lion King.
Knitting and More
The Art of Tapestry Weaving
Rebecca Mezoff
Rebecca Mezoff shares her techniques in this in-depth guide to every aspect of the process, from developing a color palette to selecting yarn, warping the loom, and weaving the image.
A-Z of knitting
The Ultimate Resource for Beginners and Experienced Knitters
Search Press
If you are new to knitting or just want to learn a new knitting technique, then this is the book for you! Everything from the basics to embellishing your knitting with surface embroidery, Swiss darning, smocking, beads and sequins!
Baby’s First Knits
20 Irresistible Knits for Babies
Debbie Bliss
Suitable for novices and experienced knitters alike, 20 practical yet beautiful projects include garments, toys, and nursery accessories. Full-color photos and step-by-step directions explain basics plus cabling, Fair Isle, and other techniques.
Everyday Embroidery For Modern Stitchers
Megan Eckman
This book of easy and modern embroidery projects features uniquely retro, mystic, and botanical designs, while keeping the process simple through simple instructions and individual stitch guides
Vogue Knitting
The Learn-to-Knit Book
Vogue Knitting Magazine
Anyone can learn to knit-and who better to learn from than the authorities at Vogue Knitting? Vogue Knitting: The Learn-to-Knit Book is the ultimate guide to learning all about yarn, needles, patterns, and, of course, those two basic stitches: knitting and purling. Readers can follow along with beautiful step-by-step photographs that teach how to cast on, bind off, and knit up a collection of stitches ranging from basic stockinette to basket weave, bobbles, cables, and more.
Quilting
Crazy Quilting Dazzling Diamond
Kathy Lynn Seaman Shaw
Detailed patterns and instructions for creating crazy quilts, including limitless embroidery options.
Love Jelly Roll Quilts
A Baker’s Dozen of Tasty Projects for All Skill Levels
Love Patchwork & Quilting
A collection of bright, bold quilts from 2 1/2″ precut strips. Use jelly rolls to sew projects from easy to innovative.
Modern Memory Quilts
A Handbook for Capturing Meaningful Moments
Suzanne Paquette
Create modern heirloom quilts! 12 exciting designs for memory keeping, with the stories that inspired them. Learn tips for sewing with clothing to preserve the past and celebrate the future. Make gifts for children, honor a lost loved one, and celebrate your family’s legacy.
Quilt
Modern Curves & Bold Stripes
Heather Black and Daisy Aschehoug
Move beyond common circle-quilt designs to tackle curved piecing with ease. Add stripes to curved piecing and use color to add depth for a simple way to make complex quilts. Piece block-based layouts and improv designs ranging from simple to advanced.
Quilted With Love
Patchwork Projects Inspired by a Passion for Quilting
Sarah Fielke
With 16 stunning projects to choose from, you can join in Sarah’s passion for this addictive craft. Whether you class yourself modern or traditional, a beginner or advanced quilter, there is a project in this book to inspire and challenge your own passion for quilting. This beautifully photographed book is brimming with Sarah’s insider tips and provides the quilter with an accessible way to try out new methods, textures and colors, and in the process build upon their skills.
Literature History and Inspiration
Death by Shakespeare
Snakebites, Stabbings and Broken Hearts
Kathryn Harkup
Investigates what actual events may have inspired Shakespeare, what the accepted scientific knowledge of the time was, and how Elizabethan audiences would have responded to these death scenes.
Ex Libris
100 Books to Read and Reread
Michiko Kakutani
The Pulitzer Prize-winning literary critic shares 100 personal, thought-provoking essays on the life-changing works of fiction, nonfiction and poetry she most recommends for the establishment of well-read world citizenship, from The Federalist Papers to the Harry Potter novels.
Shakespeare in a Divided America
What His Plays Tell Us About Our Past and Future
James Shapiro
A scholarly examination of how American leaders have found wisdom in the works of Shakespeare, revealing the lessons that the Bard’s plays can teach about the political turbulence of today.
The Toni Morrison Book Club
Juda Bennett, Winnifred Brown-Glaude, Cassandra Jackson, Piper Kendrix Williams
Four friends—black and white, gay and straight, immigrant and American-born—offer a radical vision for book clubs as sites of self-discovery and communal healing. The Toni Morrison Book Club insists that we make space to find ourselves in fiction and turn to Morrison as a spiritual guide to our most difficult thoughts and ideas about American literature and life.
The Writer’s Library
The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives
Nancy Pearl and Jeff Schwager
Interviews with 23 of today’s most accomplished authors reveal the books that inspired their literary careers, in an illustrated volume that includes contributions by such leading writers as T.C. Boyle, Michael Chabon and Louise Erdrich.
Writing Wild
Women Poets, Ramblers, and Mavericks Who Shape How We See the Natural World
Kathryn Aalto
An American landscape designer, historian, writer and lecturer celebrates 25 women, both historical and current, whose influential writing helps deepen our connection to and understanding of the natural world.
Poetry
Dearly
New Poems
Margaret Atwood
The internationally acclaimed, award-winning and bestselling author presents her first collection of poetry in over a decade that addresses themes such as love, loss, the passage of time, nature—and zombies.
Home Body
Rupi Kaur
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Milk and Honey and The Sun and Her Flowers comes her greatly anticipated third collection of poetry.
Whale Day
And Other Poems
Billy Collins
A latest collection by the former Poet Laureate of the United States gathers more than 50 new poems that reflect the writer’s signature mix of playful and serious language. By the author of The Rain in Portugal.
Essays
Becoming Duchess Goldblatt
Anonymous
The award-winning fiction author of The Giant’s House who runs a popular humor Twitter account purporting to be an 81-year old European Duchess provides an autobiography of both herself and her social-media fictional counterpart.
I Don’t Want to Die Poor
Michael Arceneaux
The author of the New York Times best-selling I Can’t Date Jesus offers a humorous and insightful essay collection that discusses his struggles with debt and how that impacts every other area of his life.
I Want to Be Where the Normal People Are
Rachel Bloom
A laugh-out-loud anthology by the star of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend collects essays, poems and other personal creations to explore such subjects as her perceptions of “normal,” struggles with depression and life-shaping female friendships.
My Life as a Villainess
Laura Lippman
A first non-fiction compilation by the award-winning author of The Lady in the Lake features original and previously published essays on subjects ranging from her childhood and education to her achievements as a reporter and crime-fiction author.
So You’re a Little Sad, So What?
Nice Things to Say to Yourself on Bad Days and Other Essays
Alicia Tobin
Essays that locate the funny in low self-esteem, family dysfunction, and bad relationships.
Vesper Flights
Helen Macdonald
Presents a collection of top-selected essays about humanity’s relationship with nature, exploring subjects ranging from captivity and immigration to ostrich farming and the migrations of songbirds from the Empire State Building.
Wintering
The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times
Katherine May
An intimate, revelatory book exploring the ways we can care for and repair ourselves when life knocks us down.