Using Your Hands: DIY Book Reviews

All these books can be enjoyed by adults and children alike. The creative force behind them is what appeals to me. In this age of video games, the idea of using fingers other than your thumbs is a fantastic idea.

Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-Shirt by Megan Nicolay (Workman). For a sleepover, a team party, a Halloween costume or for shock value, these ideas are clever and constructive and tactile. Nicolay provides DIY instructions for creating funky new shirts, skirts, handbags, pillows, dolls and more. Come on, America - - get back to creating things with your hands! Ages 9 and up, great for older kids.

Hello, Cupcake! By Karen Tack and Alan Richardson (Houghton Mifflin). This book might be a DIY book for the crafty, baking types. For me, it is like the seven wonders of the world. Tack is a food stylist and Richardson is a food photographer – both regularly appear in all the leading food and women’s magazines. Luckily, they can still make the ideas look simple. Half the fun is figuring out what they used in their creations. Both boys and girls will sit goggle-eyed in front of these creations. All Ages.

Pocket Flyers Paper Airplane Book, by Ken Blackburn and Jeff Lammers (Workman). A little sibling to the bigger paper airplane books, this little edition goes everywhere with you. In the car, to the restaurant and, unfortunately, to school where it can get little people in trouble. Great graphics, perfect for the militarily inclined, easy folding techniques and fabulous flying ability, this is a perfect gift for busy minds. Ages 8 and up.

The All-New Woodworking for Kids, by Kevin McGuire (Lark Books). All kids should play with hammers and nails—and not just with Whack-a-Mole. With safety instructions and proper equipment, a whole new world opens up for them. They start to see how things are put together. Our friends started purchasing fix-it-up houses for their teenage sons to work on, to understand how to pull up carpeting and paint and lay quarter-round trim along the floor. Can your kids do that? It all starts here. Ages 8 and up.

Anna Banana: 101 Jump Rope Rhymes, by Joanna Cole, illus by Alan Tiegreen (Harper Collins). This old treasure is from 1989 but it is a family favorite. The rhyming passes for poetry. And our school always supports “Jump Rope for Heart,” which brings out the jump ropes every year. Hop to it! Ages 5 and up.

In Leawood, Julie Hubble is using her fingers by typing.