Knit the City: A Whodunnknit set in London by Deadly Knitshade

Since 2009, Deadly Knitshade and her covert group of dyed-in-the-wool knitting ninjas have been transforming the grey streets of London in a riot of woolly colour - one stitch at a time. No corner is safe from their yarnstorms - sublime crafty marriages of street art and knitting - which have baffled policemen, delighted tourists, and brought a touch of much-needed homespun colour into the everyday lives of Londoners. Knit the City's handmade mischief transformed a forlorn ballerina outside the Royal Opera House, cosied a Parliament Square phone box and conjured a 13-ft spider's web, replete with doomed insects and fairies, in a tunnel beneath Waterloo station. Their daring arty feats will ensure that you never see knitting - or London - the same way again.

I have seen small bits in the newspaper about a group of women decorating London with their knitting - this book is a celebration of their work and the story behind it.

The book begins as a story, illustrated with photographs of the Knit the City's work and art around London. The knitted art which is photographed and included in the book contains small pieces of art including telephone cord covers and small pieces on signpost poles and small animal 'teddies' right through to huge pieces of art including a cover for a red telephone box and the squid which decorated Charles Darwin. The photographs of the work produced by Knit the City members are fantastic and it is great to see the imaginative projects that the members have prepared. Churches bedecked with knitted bells, trees with oranges and lemons and my favorite the Alice in Wonderland set. The projects are all photographed perfectly, allowing you to see the small details included within the knitted pieces.

The book also includes patterns for knitting a small squid and a square sheep to enable you to join in the knit the city project yourself.

Each chapter is a different theme undertaken by the members and the pictures tell the story. The Yarn Corps (members) are very clever ladies and I have really enjoyed looking through and reading about their work. Towards the back of the book there is a section where the main players in the Corp are introduced to the readers.

This book is a fun book to look through and to get inspiration for fun projects avid knitters can try. There are only two simple patterns included within the book and therefore should be bought as a coffee table book and not one for adding to a knitters every expanding library.

Thank you to the publishers, Summersdale Publishers, for sending me the book to review.