Hooked on Shakespeare by Gurinder Kaur Hatchard

Hooked on Shakespeare

by Gurinder Kaur Hatchard

15 projects featuring more than 30 step-by-step amigurumi inspired by the works of William Shakespeare.

Published to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's First Folio being published, this fabulous collection of creations ranges from the iconic Romeo and Juliet to Hamlet and the Ghost, and from the Three Witches from Macbeth to Bottom and Titania from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Not forgetting the one and only Woolliam Shakespeare himself.

Each project features an introduction to the play and its characters, followed by colourful step-by-step instructions. The easy-to-make designs include fully illustrated stitch basics, perfect for beginning crocheters as well as advanced crochet enthusiasts.

Reviewed by annieb123 on

4 of 5 stars

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Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Hooked on Shakespeare is an adorable collection of crocheted amigurumi patterns for Shakespearean characters (and the bard himself) written by Gurinder Kaur Hatchart. Released 24th Oct 2023 by Bloomsbury on their Herbert Press imprint, it's 128 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats. 

This is such a fun collection of small amigurumi crochet dolls with a surprising amount of detail, and made with readily available yarns and supplies. The tutorials are easy to understand, and all of them include tools and supplies lists, along with step by step instructions and process photos in colour. There are dolls from 14 of the plays as well as an adorable "Wooliam Shakespeare" himself. 

The author has also included tips and basic instructions for getting started with 3 dimensional crochet. Although the instructions are well written and detailed, it would be best for absolute beginners to have access to an experienced crochet friend or local yarn boutique for help along the way. More experienced beginners will have no problems following the tutorials to create the projects included in the book. 

Most of them use very small amounts of individual colours and are thus perfect for stash-busting and using up the yarns which readers already have on hand.

Four stars. Adorable and well written patterns. This would be an excellent choice for public library acquisition, home use, maker's groups, and for crocheting for "educational" toys for children's play/doll show for an audience. A good and relevant introduction to the major plays for youngsters (all ages, really). 

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes. 

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Reading updates

  • 30 December, 2023: Started reading
  • 30 December, 2023: Finished reading
  • 30 December, 2023: Reviewed