The Complete Book of Knots

Rating:
Summary: A knot-tyers reference for most popular and some rarer knots
Review: Geoffrey Budworth's book is mistitled "complete" but does not miss the mark for this knot-tyer. "Knots" has a very clear layout, excellent graphics, and is supported by clear and concise descriptions, including some invaluable history. It doesn't miss a beat of the essential information for beginners and masters of the art alike. It certainly does not contain every knot known, but it is complete in the sense that every useful, most of the decorative, and certainly all of the essential knots have been included for all knot-tyers, be they climber, sailor, caver, angler, outdoorsman, indoorsman or scout. Geoffrey distinguishes between them all very nicely with a graphic tab that can easily be located. A great buy and well worth the small investment.

Rating:
Summary: A knot-tyers reference for most popular and some rarer knots
Review: Geoffrey Budworth's book is mistitled "complete" but does not miss the mark for this knot-tyer. "Knots" has a very clear layout, excellent graphics, and is supported by clear and concise descriptions, including some invaluable history. It doesn't miss a beat of the essential information for beginners and masters of the art alike. It certainly does not contain every knot known, but it is complete in the sense that every useful, most of the decorative, and certainly all of the essential knots have been included for all knot-tyers, be they climber, sailor, caver, angler, outdoorsman, indoorsman or scout. Geoffrey distinguishes between them all very nicely with a graphic tab that can easily be located. A great buy and well worth the small investment.

Rating:
Summary: A nice introduction to the world of knots...
Review: I bought this book for my husband for Christmas, and we've both come to like it very much. Neither of us are "knot aficionados", as it were, but wanted a book which would allow us to explore some knots we might need in our outdoor activities (horseback riding, camping, sailing, etc.) As the beginners at knotmaking we are, this book has proven to be excellent for us.

At the very beginning the book has a directory of the knots contained, listed by name, page number, application (sailing, caving, climbing, and so on), and description. In the introduction the book covers a number of topics: knotlore; terms, tips, and techniques; ends; and tips on using the book. In the main part of the book, each knot has a small photo of a finished knot, an explanation of the application of the knot, numerous diagrams showing the knot being tied, a description of the tying of the knot, and a brief history of the knot itself.

I really don't understand why some of the other reviewers feel so strongly about this book, as a neophyte to the world of knots, I found it more than adequate, and it served my needs well. And I find my husband returning to it again and again, as he slowly falls under the spell of knots, well on his way to becoming a true knot geek. If you're a beginner looking for a practical guide to knotmaking, this book will suit you well.

Rating:
Summary: A nice introduction to the world of knots...
Review: I bought this book for my husband for Christmas, and we've both come to like it very much. Neither of us are "knot aficionados", as it were, but wanted a book which would allow us to explore some knots we might need in our outdoor activities (horseback riding, camping, sailing, etc.) As the beginners at knotmaking we are, this book has proven to be excellent for us.

At the very beginning the book has a directory of the knots contained, listed by name, page number, application (sailing, caving, climbing, and so on), and description. In the introduction the book covers a number of topics: knotlore; terms, tips, and techniques; ends; and tips on using the book. In the main part of the book, each knot has a small photo of a finished knot, an explanation of the application of the knot, numerous diagrams showing the knot being tied, a description of the tying of the knot, and a brief history of the knot itself.

I really don't understand why some of the other reviewers feel so strongly about this book, as a neophyte to the world of knots, I found it more than adequate, and it served my needs well. And I find my husband returning to it again and again, as he slowly falls under the spell of knots, well on his way to becoming a true knot geek. If you're a beginner looking for a practical guide to knotmaking, this book will suit you well.

Rating:
Summary: DO NOT, Repeat DO NOT buy this book
Review: There are better books for the beginner or intermediate. DAWSON'S book is nice, so is the MORROW BOOK OF KNOTS. Neither suffers from the deficiencies of Budworth's book. The faults include: Inadequate, minimal, poorly-written textual instructions; VERY poor illustrations, possibly even errors, make it very hard to figure out how to do the knots; A choice of hard-to-read sans serif type faces, make the text hard to read; Surprising omissions of some of the most useful knots. For example, the Marlinespike Hitch is a quick (1 second or so) way to put a temporary loop around a tool handle or rod anywhere along a line, to give you a 'handle' to pull on.; The author is purportedly a world-class expert on knots. Unfortunately, he is not an expert on putting a book together, and allowed his name to be put on something that reeks of a slopped together 'pastepot' job.

What SHOULD you buy? The KLUTZ book of knots is great for a kid or total beginner adult. (But throw in some nice rope on your own if you get a chance and give as a gift). Both the MORROW book and the DAWSON book have good text and superb photo illustrations, making almost every knot well-explained.

Let's hope that Budworth can teach his publisher the difference between quality and slop. But I doubt the publisher (OCTOPUS PUBLISHING GROUP, LTD. in England) cares about quality OR feedback. My own letters to them have been totally ignored, as have letters from other people.

Rating:
Summary: DO NOT, Repeat DO NOT buy this book
Review: There are better books for the beginner or intermediate. DAWSON'S book is nice, so is the MORROW BOOK OF KNOTS. Neither suffers from the deficiencies of Budworth's book. The faults include: Inadequate, minimal, poorly-written textual instructions; VERY poor illustrations, possibly even errors, make it very hard to figure out how to do the knots; A choice of hard-to-read sans serif type faces, make the text hard to read; Surprising omissions of some of the most useful knots. For example, the Marlinespike Hitch is a quick (1 second or so) way to put a temporary loop around a tool handle or rod anywhere along a line, to give you a 'handle' to pull on.; The author is purportedly a world-class expert on knots. Unfortunately, he is not an expert on putting a book together, and allowed his name to be put on something that reeks of a slopped together 'pastepot' job.

What SHOULD you buy? The KLUTZ book of knots is great for a kid or total beginner adult. (But throw in some nice rope on your own if you get a chance and give as a gift). Both the MORROW book and the DAWSON book have good text and superb photo illustrations, making almost every knot well-explained.

Let's hope that Budworth can teach his publisher the difference between quality and slop. But I doubt the publisher (OCTOPUS PUBLISHING GROUP, LTD. in England) cares about quality OR feedback. My own letters to them have been totally ignored, as have letters from other people.

Rating:
Summary: Not "Complete" but extremely useful and usable
Review: This book is very well put together. Knots are categorized by use: boating, outdoors, climbing, fishing and home. There is a handy chart at the beginning indicating the best use of each knot in the book. Each knot is illustrated with diagrams. These are generally clear though a couple were difficult to figure out. I have learned a lot from this book and heartily recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Quite Good - With One Glaring Omission
Review: This is a quite good book that covers almost any knot that one would ever really need to tie. Most of the color illustrations give a clear depiction of the steps required to tie each knot, but they are nothing special compared with other guides.

What gives this book added value, I think, is the brief discussion of the history and development of each knot. I also like the categorization as to sailing, climbing, and so on with the cross-references as to use.

However, I think that the chart at the front of the book would be much more useful if were in alphabetical order rather than order of appearance. I must also take the author to task for failing to include the sheep shank. This knot has been a favorite of mine since Quint (Robert Shaw) asked Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) to tie one to prove his seamanship in the movie Jaws.

Rating:
Summary: worth a look
Review: This is an interesting book and well worth the investment. The only reason I hessitate to give it more than three stars is that the book seems to skip a step here and there, or the illustrations are a bit confusing at times (at least for a beginner like me). Things that make this book worth buying are:

layout according to the usage of the knots (ex sailing, camping etc) color coded sections for easy access effect of each knot on rope strength