Rating: 
Summary: Super cool & super fun!
Review: Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, truckers, sailors and every human being eventual will use knots. As for me the extent of my knot knowledge, until this year, was the famed ‘shoe lace bow knot’. However, this year I took up sailing and on my first day the Captain said to me, “Go over to that jib sheet and tie the halyard with a bowline.” HUH? Do what to whom? When? Ultimately, my need to tie various types of knots brought me to this book. I wanted a simple, basic book that would clearly show me how to tie the basic knots. That’s it. I have no intention of joining the “International Guild of Knot Tyers” Really!- (website)I just want to tie a few knots: Square Knot (with Granny Knot), Sheet Bend, Clove Hitch, Two Half-Hitches, Bowline, Bowline on a Bite and a couple knots to impress at a cocktail party. Cassidy’s book has an interesting gimmick, it comes with its own cords attached and has holes in the book to tie the cord through. And, the knots are very basic (25 Knots were selected out of the 4000 that exist), but the diagrams are NOT as easy to follow or as comprehend as other books (see my reviews on Great Knots & How to Tie Them [Lewis] and The Complete Book of Sailing Knots [Budworth]). A few of the knot diagrams were so confusing that I needed to consult the afore mentioned knot books. Thus, though this book is basically adequate, there are better books to help you to understand knots. Conditionally recommended 2 3/4 stars
Rating:
Summary: Most user-friendly knot book
Review: For learning basic knots, this book is a great resource. Author prioritizes knots, indicating the three most useful. Diagrams are great. Ropes included with book are helpful.
Rating:
Summary: Great book on Knots for begining sailors
Review: I got this book to teach a beginning sailor the basic knots. It is great. The die cut board pages show what the knot is supposed to look like when done. The directions are easy and clear. In fact after reading it I've changed the knot I tie my shoes with. Even us old salts can learn a trick or two. The instructions are much clearer than those in my old boy scout manual. In general the Klutz titles are well done books and this one fits right in with the rest. Sending your kid to sailing school? Get them this book first. They will be ahead of the game and can focus on the aspects of sailing which are hard to teach from a book, wind direction, where to go etc.
Rating:
Summary: Great book on Knots for begining sailors
Review: I got this book to teach a beginning sailor the basic knots. It is great. The die cut board pages show what the knot is supposed to look like when done. The directions are easy and clear. In fact after reading it I've changed the knot I tie my shoes with. Even us old salts can learn a trick or two. The instructions are much clearer than those in my old boy scout manual. In general the Klutz titles are well done books and this one fits right in with the rest. Sending your kid to sailing school? Get them this book first. They will be ahead of the game and can focus on the aspects of sailing which are hard to teach from a book, wind direction, where to go etc.
Rating:
Summary: Most user-friendly knot book
Review: I knew nothing about knots besides tying my shoelaces (and the book showed me a better way to do even THAT). This book is great because it gives you 24 of the most basic knots to tie (out of supposedly 4000 in existence) and gives you step-by-step instructions alongside thick-cardboard die-cut pages with a couple long strings to practice with. I've used it as a reference many many times since buying it.
Rating:
Summary: Great for learning all the basic knots, great reference
Review: I knew nothing about knots besides tying my shoelaces (and the book showed me a better way to do even THAT). This book is great because it gives you 24 of the most basic knots to tie (out of supposedly 4000 in existence) and gives you step-by-step instructions alongside thick-cardboard die-cut pages with a couple long strings to practice with. I've used it as a reference many many times since buying it.
Rating: 
Summary: You need this book if you've got kids
Review: Not that you want to tie your children up, or give them information on the best way to tie you up, but because you'll learn how to tie shoelaces that not only don't come undone, but that can be untied with a single pull! If you've got kids you know what that means. You'll be freed from many years of slavery to retying shoes or trying to get double-knotted shoes untied. This information alone is worth the price of admission. Admittedly, there are a lot of knots that Mr. and Ms. everyday (like me) will never use but we all need some more useless information to add to our storehouse of knowledge. (Actually I give this book 3.5 stars but can't figure out how, if there is a way, to do it.)
Rating:
Summary: Nearly satisfying...
Review: The aim of this book is to tie simple knots. As an introduction for children, this book may serve its purpose, but even at that, it tries too hard. The format and illustrations, though good, do not provide the necessary support for children to achieve the goal of tying these knots by themselves. If you are a parent, you'll have to learn how yourself, then teach your kids how to do it - which is fine. This is a fun and "cute" book for kids that provides more entertainment than learning value. Once viewed, however, I suspect that the fluffy content will not attract a second look. Hopefully, the book does provide an outlet for curiosity that may develop into long-term interest in acquiring useful skills. The book comes with rope, ready to be tied through holes in the covers. However, kids will NOT follow the attractive illustrations intuitively. Other books in the same price range are better for learning how to tie knots using more and clearer diagrams and descriptive text - though less attractively. For diehard enthusiasts, the most authoritative (and difficult!) book on knot tying is the venerable Ashley Book of Knots, by Clifford Ashley. ... As an alternative to deciphering diagrams on a page, you could search ... for "Beutner Multimedia" to find a series of multimedia software CD-ROMs on knot tying adopted by the Boy Scouts of America. The CD-ROMs use video to show any kid or adult how to tie, splice, and knot at various skill levels using high quality video instruction performed by an expert. (Remarkably, the software runs entirely off the CD-ROM, without installation, on a PC.) The best solution? Find a senior citizen to teach you how to tie the knots! In a relaxing afternoon, you can learn all of the knots you'll ever need without the frustration of following confusing diagrams. Because this book does spark interest in acquiring an important skill, it earns a conditional recommendation of 3 stars.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for kids, probably
Review: This book has rather few knots, and instead of making every one of the few knots count and making sure to hit all the basics, it wastes space on some knots most people won't ever need. ... On the other hand, with the built-in cords, it would make an appealing-looking gift for kids. But, the gimmick of having little cut-outs for the ropes to go through when practicing knots fails, because the cardboard readily tears with an ordinary kind of pull. But, the average person will learn a useful knot or two from this book... if nothing else, your kid will be pleased to find out how to tie his sneakers just as securely as doubleknotted, but untying with a single pull, and looking very similar to a regular knot but kind of cool. That knot could be worth the price of admission... but overall something like Morrow's Guide to knots is far superior and not much more money. Overall, I felt the book was a gimmicky semi-ripoff, but that's not being quite fair, because the average person will pick up a few useful knots from it, whereas they might just be intimidated or confused by a more comprehensive book.
Rating:
Summary: Great Introduction
Review: This book is a great way to get started on knots - only 25 knots. The author has selected the knots that are most useful. It also includes two strands of red and blue rope and some of the pages are thick with holes in the correct locations to try some of the hitches (knots you tie to stuff). It was exactly what I needed to get my feet wet, not feel overwhelmed by the thousands of existing knots and to know some useful knots to use in real life quickly.
| 
