This is one of my all-time, hands-down, favorite crochet books:

Although the dust jacket of my book looks a bit worn and out-dated, the information contained within its covers is surprisingly fresh.

Written by Delia Brock and Lorraine Bodger, this masterpiece of crochet instruction and inspiration was published in 1972 by Simon & Schuster and originally retailed for $7.50.

I bought The Adventurous Crocheter somewhere between January of 1998 and July of 1999; I paid $8.50 at one of the used bookstores I then frequented. The copy I purchased had initially been a gift from someone named Betty Knight to another someone named Edna Beaver, and in addition to all of the information the book contains, I like the idea that my copy began its life as a gift from one person to another.

The Adventurous Crocheter is neither a stitch guide or collection of patterns, but could most accurately be described as a guide to expressing one’s self with crochet using the materials at hand and a spirit of improvisation to transform ordinary objects into the extraordinary. The joy and verve along with the can-do spirit expressed in this book has informed my crochet on many levels.

If you are able to find a copy of this book, buy it; I cannot recommend it highly enough.