Modern top-down knitting : sweaters, dresses, skirts & accessories inspired by the technique of Barbara G. Walker by Kristina McGowan ; photographs by Gudrun Georges — Many knitters prefer to knit top-down. It often comes with benefits such as requiring less finishing, fewer pieces to handle, and the ease of being able to try on things like sweaters even when you've only made a little progress so far (just slip it over your head!). This book contains patterns for sweaters, dresses, hats, and even things that might not have a traditional "top," like wraps.

Big little felt universe : sew it, stuff it, squeeze it, fun! by Jeanette Lim — Felt is such an ideal medium for making cute things. It's soft, a little fuzzy around the edges, not terribly pricey, and it's really easy to work with. This book includes patterns and instructions to make an army of toys for your kids, or maybe just a cute object to have on your desk. From cake to fruit to burgers on the grill to a tool box full of tools, there are over 70 patterns included.

The week-by-week vegetable gardener's handbook by Ron Kujawski and Jennifer Kujawski — When you're growing vegetables in a variable climate like Michigan's, it can be hard to know exactly when things should be happening and what to plant when. This book outlines those timelines in detail for a variety of vegetables. It also includes many tips and bits of information that any veg gardener will find useful.

We have a wide variety of Chinese books starting to arrive for 2011. Come in and check some out. New titles include:

Bai xing jia chang cai by Jinlong Xia

Xi xia de cang lang by Mo Xue

Zhongguo yan yuan fang tan lu by Yi Lijing zhu

Knitting block by block by Nicky Epstein — It is amazing how many projects can be constructed by using blocks. In this book, renowned knitter and designer Nicky Epstein shows 150 different blocks you can use to create sweaters, afghans, bags, scarves, and a bunch of other items. She includes so many different techniques in these blocks that even experienced knitters may learn some new ones.

Many parents teach signs to their young children before they are able to speak. If you'd like to try signing with your baby, we have materials that can help you get started. Below are some suggested books and DVDs that can be found in the Parenting section in the Children's Department.

Baby sign language basics: early communication for hearing babies and toddlers by Monta Z. Briant

Baby signing: how to talk with your baby in American sign language by Andrea Fixell and Ted Stafford

History is full of days and years which have special meaning. 1492? Columbus discovered America. 1776? America declared its independence. 1929? The stock market crashed. We all learned about these significant dates in school. However, these are just some of the years in history worth remembering - for better or for worse.

Understanding garden design : the complete handbook for aspiring designers by Vanessa Gardner Nagel — August may seem like an odd time to be designing a garden, but it's never the wrong time to plan and this book is all about planning. It includes instructions and information on overall design, working with the natural features of the landscape, irrigation, lighting, and much more. It also includes tips and suggestions for what to plant in what sorts of places in your garden for a pleasing overall effect.

Sometimes the simplest stories have the most to say. Children's stories can be that way and often give us a lot to think about. Children's authors Eileen and Jerry Spinelli recognize this in their book Today i will . This little book gives a years worth of interesting quotes from children's fiction books, and then challenges the reader with some thoughts and advice. Check out this little green book in the J800 section.

Our May We Suggest Facebook page reached triple digits with 100 followers. In honor of this, here's an eclectic list of books which also have a hundred — of something. Join us on Facebook to get awesome suggestions every week.

One hundred names for love: a stroke, a marriage, and the language of healing by Diane Ackerman

The one hundred: a guide to the pieces every stylish woman must own by Nina Garcia; illustrations by Ruben Toledo

Canton Seniors Book Discussion group will meet on Wednesday, October 26 from 2:00-3:00p.m. in Canton Public Library's Group Study Room A. This month's reading selection is:
 

The homesteading handbook : a back to basics guide to growing your own food, canning, keeping chickens, generating your own energy, crafting, herbal medicine, and more by Abigail R. Gehring — Are you interested in being more self-sufficient? This book is truly a one-stop resource for virtually all aspects of homesteading including herbal medicine, useful crafting, keeping animals like chickens and goats, building sheds and other small structures, canning, generating energy, growing edibles, and more. If all that sounds like a lot of work, it also includes fun things like how to make your own ice cream.

If you are looking for a new Christian book to read, whether fiction or non, and would like to read a review first, check out these websites:

• Christian Review of Books
• Christian Broadcasting Network New Books
• Discerning Reader

Also, check out our Inspirational Books Suggestions on our "Books and More" Page and our Inspirational Bundles.

Thinking of learning a new language or brushing up on a language that you learned in the past but haven't used in a while? Or, are you an English language learner that is looking for help improving your English? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then the language learning tools that the CPL has to offer are going to help you out! Come to the library and check out some of our materials for a variety of different languages:

501 Spanish verbs: fully conjugated in all the tenses in a new, easy-to-learn format, alphabetically arranged by Christopher Kendris and Theodore Kendris

The repurposed library : 33 craft projects that give old books new life by Lisa Occhipinti ; photographs by Thayer Allyson Gowdy — It can be so hard to say good-bye to an old book, even when it has lost its usefulness as a resource or story. This book provides a bunch of great ideas for repurposing them instead, including instructions for creating a birdhouse, a lamp, a chandelier, a clock, and many more. Perhaps you might find a re-purpose-able book in Second Hand Prose.

If you are considering modifying your home to accommodate a family member with limited physcical capabilities the Hartford offers several guidebooks on the subject.   Modern Ideas discusses in-home design alterations and Simple Solutions reviews products that help with vision  or hearing loss conditions. Download these guidebooks free at www.thehartford.com/lifetime.

Garden up! : smart vertical gardening for small and large spaces by Susan Morrison & Rebecca Sweet — Like a lot of gardeners, I have filled up the spaces in my yard and am often looking for more creative ways to use my limited space. This book has a wealth of ideas for small spaces like mine but also for large gardens. It starts with the basics - arbors and trellises - and moves on to less common techniques like living walls and growing edibles vertically. There's plenty of inspiration here!

For more than a billion Muslims around the world, including some 8 million in North America, Ramadan is a month of fasting, marked by prayer, fasting and charity. Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. Because the lunar calendar is about 11 days shorter than the solar calendar used elsewhere, Islamic holidays move each year. This year Ramadan began at sundown on August 1st.
On this occasion we send our greetings to all Muslims worldwide and special Ramadan Kareem to Muslims in North America.

The Library of Congress recently unveiled a fantastic new site called the National Jukebox which makes historical sound recordings available to the public free of charge. Included are more than 10,000 recordings orginally made by the Victor Talking Machine Company between 1901 and 1925 that were originally issued on labels now owned by Sony Entertainment. Available selections come from several genres including classical, blues, ragtime, jazz, religious, spoken word and even yodeling and whistling! The database will be increased on a regular basis with contributions from other Sony-owned labels such as Columbia and Okeh.