Abstract
This paper examines the novel "The Knitting Sutra - Craft as a Spiritual Practice," written by Susan Gordon Lydon. The writer of this paper also discusses personal details of the author's background and describes how the art of knitting wove its way through Lydon's life and helped her get off drugs and stay sober. For Lydon, the craft is an obsession, a meditation, a challenge, a chance for peace of mind and a way to quiet the mind. This paper explores the novel's vivid imagery and spirituality. This paper discusses the author's firm refusal to just blindly follow anything, even the patterns for her knitting projects, which makes her a thinking person's rebel. The book is peppered with quotes from an astonishing range of sources including Sitting Bull, singer Boz Scaggs, author Clarissa Pinkola Estes and Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart.

From the Paper
"The Knitting Sutra is a story of a woman, as women are rarely seen, one who owns herself. Her humor and passion shine throughout. If you would like to spark your mind and get it swirling with ideas, no matter if you read this through the eyes of a knitter or not, give this thought-provoking, richly written book a try. Susan's insatiable need for enlightenment and spiritual truth may wear you out at times, but it may also challenge your perspective on many, many things. You may even find yourself revisiting that unfinished sweater in your closet or that unfinished story in your desk drawer. The lesson - you never stop learning and you must never stop living...the two are inevitably intertwined."

Tags:literature, perception, art, craft

Abstract
The paper describes Charles Dickens' early years and how he was sent to work at a blacking factory only two days after his twelfth birthday. The paper discusses his achievements when he was still a teenager and then devotes time to his marriage and its eventual failure. The paper lists Dickens' many successful works that are popular until today.

From the Paper
"Charles John Huffam Dickens was born on February 2, 1812, in Portsmouth, England. He was the second child born to John and Elizabeth Dickens. His father, John, was a navy clerk.
"Even in early childhood, Dickens showed promising signs of the great writer he was to become. He was smart and loved to read, and was considered "a child of excellent abilities" (Lives and Works 101). His mother taught him how to read, and it became one of his favorite pastimes. Dickens later said, "Little Red Riding Hood was my first love" (Hunter 6). As he grew older, he began to appreciate the works of 18th century authors Henry Fielding and Tobias Smollet (Microsoft Encarta Encylopedia). The influences of these writers can be seen in Dickens' own works."

Tags:Boz, Catherine, Hogarth, Oliver, Fagin, Dombey