A pleasant surprise

While getting ready for work this morning, I browsed my bedroom bookshelf. To my great suprise, I found every single Anne of Green Gables book except the first one. I really thought they were down at my dad's house two hours away! Since I've not been able to find the time to go to the city library, I hadn't started reading for this Read & KAL. I grabbed the one copy here at my work and started reading it during lunch. I didn't remember all the knitting, except Anne's messed up sock (how could anyone forget that scene?). Here I am barely into the beginning and already two people knitting!
I've discarded the 1895 leg o' mutton blouse in favor of the Aran sweater concept. But boy is it beating me. I've started swatches three times now. All of them were no good. I've looked through Mary Thomas's Knitting Patterns book, two of Barbara G. Walker's knitting patterns books, and all of my magazines for ideas. Nothing is just right and most of the directions are beyond my novice knitter's grasp.