Book Review: The Giving Quilt

From Goodreads: At Elm Creek Manor, the week after Thanksgiving is “Quiltsgiving,” a time to commence a season of generosity. From near and far, quilters and aspiring quilters—a librarian, a teacher, a college student, and a quilt-shop clerk among them—gather for a special winter session of quilt camp, to make quilts for Project Linus. (In real life, Chiaverini has long been active in this charitable organization, dedicated to providing handmade quilts and blankets to children in need.)
Each quilter, ever mindful that many of her neighbors, friends, and family members are struggling through difficult times, uses her creative gifts to alleviate their collective burden. As the week unfolds, the quilters respond to Sylvia’s provocative question in ways as varied as the life experiences that drew them to Elm Creek Manor. Love and comfort are sewn into the warm, bright, beautiful quilts they stitch, and their stories collectively consider the strength of human connection and its rich rewards.

Thoughts: There are no surprises with this series - which is a good thing. Every now and then you need a book where you know what you are going to get - familiar characters, happy endings, solid writing. Opening and Elm Creek Quilts novel is like catching up with old friends.
In the Giving Quilt, Chiaverini takes us through the stories of 5 campers who have come to Elm Creek for the annual Quiltgiving - a camp aimed at making quilts for Project Linus. (A real life charity who delivers handmade blankets and quilts to children in need) Each camper has a story to explain what lead them to Elm Creek and each share in the healing qualities of time with like minded people.
One of the things I love about Elm Creek novels is the camaraderie it highlights that comes with quilting. Through quilting I have made wonderful friends who share a passion for fabric, thread and time at you machine! While we now share stories of family, children and work, quilting is what bought us together in the first place. Elm Creek captures that idea of shared passion so well. 

Sonoma Rose

Title: Sonama Rose
Author: Jennifer Chiaverini
Genre: Fiction
Series: Elm Creek Quilts
Audience: Adult
Format: Book - Library

From Goodreads: As the nation grapples with the strictures of Prohibition, Rosa Diaz Barclay lives on a Southern California rye farm with her volatile husband, John, who has lately found another source of income far outside the Federal purview.
Mother to eight children, Rosa mourns the loss of four who succumbed to the mysterious wasting disease currently afflicting young Ana and Miguel. Two daughters born of another father are in perfect health. When an act of violence shatters Rosa’s resolve to maintain her increasingly dangerous existence, she flees with the children and her precious heirloom quilts to the mesa where she last saw her beloved mother alive.


What I thought: This is the 19th book in the Elm Creek Quilts series. I must admit I love these books. Easy reads and good stories. I have also mentioned before that one of the other reasons I love these books is that even 19 books in, I've yet to feel like I have re-read the same book. The Goodreads description actually leaves a lot out as Rosa flees her home and goes in search of a cure for her sick children.  With her is Lars, her first love, who is determined to protect Rosa this time. Together they end up in the winery region, trying to start again. While this was a lovely story and there is a link to the Elm Creek Quilters, it's a tenuous one. There is also very little quilting in the book. Apart from the two quilts Rosa takes with her when she flees and a brief mention of quilts she intends to make for her children, there is no quilting in this book. My feeling is Chiaverini wanted to write a story based around prohibition, but wasn't comfortable enough, or allowed to by her publishers, to put it out without the Elm Creek Quilters banner. It doesn't affect the story, but readers who are drawn to the quilting aspect of these books will be left disappointed.

The Wedding Quilt

Title: The Wedding Quilt
Author: Jennifer Chiaverini
Genre: Fiction
Series: Elm Creek Quilts
Audience: Adult
Format: Book - Library

From Goodreads: Sarah McClure arrived at Elm Creek Manor as a newlywed, never suspecting that her quilting lessons with master quilter Sylvia Bergstrom Compson would inspire the successful and enduring business Elm Creek Quilts, whose members have nurtured a circle of friendship spanning generations.
The Wedding Quilt opens as the wedding day of Sarah's daughter Caroline approaches. As Sarah has learned, a union celebrates not only the betrothed couple's passage into wedlock, but also the contributions of those who have made the bride and groom the unique people they are. Thus Sarah's thoughts are filled with brides of Elm Creek Manor past and present-the traditions they honored, the legacies they bequeathed, and the wedding quilts that contain their stories in every stitch.
A wedding quilt is a powerful metaphor: of sisterhood, of community, of hope for the future. The blocks in Caroline's wedding quilt will display the signatures of beloved guests. As the Elm Creek Quilters circulate amid the festive preparations with pens and fabric in hand, memories of the Manor-and of the women who have lived there, in happiness and in sorrow-spill forth, rendering a vivid pastiche of family, friendship, and love in all its varieties. 


What I thought: This is the 18th book in the Elm Creek Quilts series. It has been too long since I have sat down at my sewing machine and this may just have inspired me to start rifling through my stash again to see what I can come up with.
The Elm Creek books jump between two time periods, the modern day and the time around the Civil War in America. The last book set in modern day saw Sarah pregnant with twins. This book takes place 25 years later as one of the twins is about to get married. Each chapter deals with what has been happening to a particular Elm Creek Quilter in the past 25 years as well as exploring the twins up bringing and the what has happened to Elm  Creek Quilts over the year. As usual, it wasn't a taxing read, but very enjoyable. I will continue to read this series as books are released.

Recommended for: those who are interested in quilting or have read the rest of the series.

100+ Challenge, A-Z Challenge

The Union Quilters

Title: The Union Quilters
Author: Jennifer Chiaverini
Genre: Fiction
Series: Elm Creek Quilts
Audience: Adult
Format: Book - Library

Synopsis: Civil War has come to the United States. As the men of Waterford prepare to join up, the women do what they can to support them. Among their activities is making things to send to their men at the front, raising money to build the union hall and supporting each other as tragic news filters through. Who will survive, who will fall and what will be left at the end?

What I thought: This is the 16th book in the Elm Creek Quilts series. I've been waiting on this since October 2010 and was lucky enough to be the first person to get this from our library. While I enjoyed the book, it's definitely not one of my favourites in the series. There is a lot of focus on the Civil War and it's battles which while interesting, are not something I find myself too interested in. Previous books that focused on the early quilters in Elm Creek have been leading to this point and it will be interesting to see where the series goes from here. Not surprisingly, given this has just come out, there is no news on further books in the series. I'm sure there will be though, and I look forward to reading them.

Recommended for: those who are interested in Civil War history, quilting or have read the rest of the series.

100+ Challenge, A-Z Challenge, TwentyEleven Challenge

The Aloha Quilt

The Aloha Quilt by Jennifer Chiaverini

This is the 16th book in the Elm Creek Quilts series.

I reviewed the 15th book back in July! It's taken that long for the one copy my local library has to get to me!

The Aloha Quilt sees one of the Elm Creek Quilter's, Bonnie, travel to Hawaii to help her friend Clare set up a quilt camp there.

Poor old Bonnie has had a bit of a hard time of it really. Her fabric shop, Grandma's Attic, has had to close for several reasons, her marriage is over and she is really a bit of a doormat for everyone. To tell you the truth, she has never been one of my favourite characters. Judgmental of others, but unwilling or unable to see her own faults, I find her very insipid and weak. The Aloha Quilt allowed her to grow and become a little more fleshed out. She learns to stand up for herself and discovers things are not always as they seem. I was quite happy with the outcome actually!

As always, but taking the main action away from Elm Creek, Chiaverini has managed to keep the series from becoming boring and repetitive. With this she also managed to fit in a bit of Hawaiian history as well. A great read for fans of the series.

A Quilter's Holiday

A Quilter's Holiday by Jennifer Chiaverini

This is the 15th book in the Elm Creek Quilts series.

This book sees the Elm Creek Quilters gather the day after Thanksgiving for their annual Quilt-a-thon and potluck lunch. With a storm closing in, it looks as if everyone will need to spend the night rather than return home. As the day progresses, each member recalls what they are thankful for, but new challenges and problems are hiding in the wings.

For me this was a bit of a scene setting book. Several things are bought up thorough out the book that I can see Chiaverini exploring further in subsequent books, such as Matt's father wanting Matt to take over the family business, the blossoming romance between Anna and Jeremy and Sylvia's continued search into her family history.  On the whole, another enjoyable read.

The Lost Quilter

The Lost Quilter by Jennifer Chiaverini

The Lost Quilter is the 14th book in the Elm Creek Quilts Series. Only two more to go - at least until March 2011 when the next book is due!

 

After my disappointment at the last Elm Creek Book - The Quilter's Kitchen - I was really pleased to find how much I enjoyed The Lost Quilter.

 

In the Runaway Quilt, we were introduced to Joanna, a runaway slave who was sheltered by the Bergstroms and set them on the path of being a station on the underground railway. The Bergstroms and therefore the readers, never found out what happened to Joanna. All they knew was she had made a Birds in the Air quilt that had landmarks stitched into it, presumably to help her find her way back to Elm Creek.

 

The Lost Quilter opens with the discovery of an old letter in a desk, asking Gerda (one of Sylvia's anscestors who helped Joanna) if she knew the whereabouts Douglass Frederick. It is assumed this is Joanna's son who was born during her stay with the Bergstroms and raised by Sylvia's great-grandparents as their own. Once again this encourages Sylvia to try and discover what happened to Joanna.

 

After this introductory piece, the reader is led back to 1859 and Joanna's recapture. The book then follows her story from that time to her eventual escape to freedom during the civil war.

 

I've read a little about the time of slavery in America, but not a huge amount. Everytime I do, I am struck with the same anger and confusion I feel when I read about the Stolen Generation in Australia. I simply cannot wrap my head around the arrogance it must take to believe you are better than someone else simply because of the colour of your skin. Not only that, to think that another human does not feel emotions like you do, again, simply because of skin colour. I know there is a historical context, influences of church, state and peers, but I frequently find myself enraged that someone can be so stupid!  At one stage during the book, Joanna is seperated from her husband and child. Sent to live in another household with no thought to the anguish this will cause. In fact, as far as her owners (and I shudder as I type that word. How can you own another human being??) are concerned, Joanna simply doesn't have those feelings.

 

Negroes don't feel love or sadness the way we do. They may give the appearance of true feeling, but they understand these sensations only in a brute, rudimentary way, such as a dog or horse might. What you see now is fear and stubbornness, as simple as that.

 

How could you or can you (as, unfortunately I know some people still do.) think like that? Just. Don't. Get. It!

I know this book is a work of fiction and in the scheme of slavery fiction, a fairly fluff piece at that, but I feel Chiaverini has done enough research to project a fairly accurate picture of one slaves life in those unbelievable times. Quite possibly my favourite Elm Creek book so far.

The Quilter's Kitchen

The Quilter's Kitchen by Jennifer Chiaverini

This is the 13th book in The Elm Creek Quilts series.

I'm still really struggling with Tracks, so when I got notice from the library that The Quilter's Kitchen was in, I decided to take a break.

For the first time, I wasn't impressed at all with an Elm Creek Quilt novel. Basically the new chef and Sylvia are cleaning out the kitchen in preparation for it's remodelling. As they clean various items trigger Sylvia's memories of her family and the role of the kitchen in the house. Each chapter is accompanied by a bunch of recipes. In a 220p book, (large print - it was the only copy the library had) only 75 pages were story. The rest were recipes that while interesting, I feel could have been made into a stand alone book rather than having a story attached to them. For me, the story was written simply to give a reason to publish the recipes. The Elm Creek franchise by this stage is strong enough that a book of Elm Creek Recipes most probably would have sold anyway without the lure of a story attached. Given I only read the stories and not the recipes, I will be honest and list this as only having 75p. in my page count.

The Winding Ways Quilt

The Winding Ways Quilt by Jennifer Chiaverini.

This is the 12th book in the Elm Creek Quilts Series.

With this we are back on track. New staff have been employed and this summer marks the last season for two of the founding members of the Elm Creek Quilts. The books chapters deals with each founding member separately, telling the story of how they became a quilter and the effect the breaking of their circle is having on them.

I liked this. Chiaverini has taken this approach before - examining each character separately and weaving their individual story into the whole. It gives you a chance to catch up with each character and discover a little more of their personal histories. By delving into the characters back story, I find Chiaverini avoids the idea that there is one drama after another at the quilt camp, a problem I find with many serialised books and TV shows. (Just how many murders can you have in Midsommer??) The dramas the camp itself faces are believable as well - staff not turning up, staff leaving.

I only have 4 more books left in this series to read and am torn between having a Elm Creek Quilt fest, or drawing it out a bit! I may have to draw it out, especially once I talk to my husband! Watch out for my next post to see what I mean!

New Year's Quilt

New Year's Quilt by Jennifer Chiaverini.

This is the 11th book in the Elm Creek Quilts series.

I've discovered with this series that at times it jumps backwards from where you expect it to be! In my mind there are two types of Elm Creek Quilt books. The first are set in the present or immediate past. These books focus on the women who have set up Elm Creek Quilts or those who attend camps there. The second are historical and focus on the history of Sylvia's family and friends, usually around the time of the civil war. The last of the books set in the present time was The Circle of Quilters which focussed on the search for new teachers. New Year's Quilt however, is set directly after The Master Quilter. Once you manage to sort out the time line in your head, it's all good and you are off on another wonderful, easy to read, fun book.

After finding the last of these books, The Quilter's Homecoming, a bit slow going, I was worried I was losing interest in these books. But, no. Once again this was started in finished in just over 24 hours. Seriously, for me, you can't beat these books for a good, light easy read. Unfortunately due to the timeline issue, I can't say too much about the book, as it would give away what happens in the Master Quilter and I would hate to spoil it for anyone who hasn't read them yet.

The Quilter's Homecoming

The Quilter's Homecoming by Jennifer Chiaverini

Number 10 in the Elm Creek Quilt Series.

This is the first of these books I didn't tear through! Set in the early 20's, Elizabeth and her new husband, Henry set off to take possession of the land he has purchased in California. They leave behind them all their family, knowing it is unlikely they will ever see them again. Packed in her trunk, Elizabeth carries her wedding quilt and a chimney and cornerstones quilt made for her by her female relatives. On arrival in California, they discover the land they have purchased was never for sale and they have lost Henry's life savings. How will they survive alone in this unknown place with no money and nowhere to call home?

I'm not sure why I found this harder to get through than the other books I've read. Maybe because quilting featured less? I still enjoyed the book and towards the end picked up the pace significantly. I am looking forward to the next in the series and hoping in brings back the zing I normally find when reading this series.

Circle of Quilters

Circle of Quilters by Jennifer Chiaverini

Book nine in the Elm Creek Quilts series

Two of the original Elm Creek Quilters are moving on to other projects, leaving two teaching vacancies. But they can't employ just anyone, it needs to be someone special who will appreciate and understand the uniqueness of Elm Creek Quilts and help it continue the tradition of unforgettable camps for it's clients.

Circle of Quilters focuses on the search for new staff. 5 applicants are interviewed and each chapter explores their story - what led them to quilt, what encourages them to apply for the job and how their interview goes.

I found this a lot of fun! As I read it each story I was assessing each applicants suitability for the job. I am pleased to say that I reached the same conclusion as the Elm Creek Quilters! It's a little ridiculous really, given it's a fictional book. I continue to admire Chiaverini's ability to keep the series fresh and interesting. Almost all of the books I have read would be able to stand alone, but reading the previous books gives you just that little bit extra insight. I'm looking forward to the next one!

The Master Quilter

The Master Quilter by Jennifer Chiaverini

Book six in the Elm Creek Quilts series  starts with a letter to previous quilt campers, friends and colleagues of Sylvia asking them to make a quilt block to contribute to a bridal quilt for Sylvia and Andrew. They need 140 and are hoping to get enough despite the short notice.

This is the first book since the second one (Round Robin) that focuses mainly on the Elm Creek Quilters themselves. The big theme for the book is change! There's a lot of it going on! Issues surrounding work, relationships and family abound. It's hard to say too much without giving away what happens in the book. Needless to say, it is all sorted by the end and while there is still heartache to endure and decisions to be made, you know that this bunch of friends will be around to support each other, no matter what!

This is the last of the Elm Creek books I have already read. To tell you the truth, I thought I'd only read 3 or 4! I have read the synopsis of the next book and I know I haven't read it! It's on hold at the library and I need to read The Poisonwood Bible for this month's book club, so there will be a slight reprieve from the Elm Creek books. Aren't you pleased!?

The Quilters Legacy

The Quilter's Legacy by Jennifer Chiaverini

I got The Runaway Quilt, The Quitler's Legacy and The Master Quilter in one anthology so they got read in one hit.

The Quilter's Legacy focuses on Sylvia's search for 5 quilts her mother made and her sister sold during her and Sylvia's estrangement. As a child, Sylvia knew these quilts as the "fancy quilts." Ones bought out for special visitors as opposed to the every day quilts usually draped on the beds.

Using a variety of clues, Sylvia and the rest of the Elm Creek quilters track down what has happened the 5 quilts. Some are recovered, others aren't, but in the end, their fates are mostly known.

Running parallel to Sylvia's hunt, is another lesson in her forebears history. The reader is let into the story Sylvia doesn't know - how each quilt came to be made and it's significance to her mother. Obviously Chiaverini felt that another undiscovered diary would be way to much of a plot device, especially straight after The Runaway Quit used it. I'm glad though, that she allowed the reader to know what had happened, even if her characters remained in the dark. At the end of the book however, when Sylvia finds the last remaining quilt and sets the record straight on it's maker and part of it's history, she vows to delve into her mother's history and find out about it, acknowledging that her mother's side of the family is just as much a part of her personal history as her father's already much lauded and celebrated heritage is.

The Runaway Quilt

The Runaway Quilt by Jennifer Chiaverini

Yep, another Elm Creek Quilt novel. They are just so easy to chew through!

In the fourth novel in the series, Sylvia is approached by Margaret Alden who owns a quilt called the Elm Creek Quilt. It is a family heirloom and the connection to Elm Creek has been lost. It is also known as the Runaway Quilt. Stitched into the quilt's quilting design is Elm Creek Manor and part of the surrounding country side. What has Sylvia in a flap is Margaret's family are Southerners and her descendants were slave owners. Could this quilt have been taken south by a descendant of Sylvia's, meaning there was a slave owner in her history? The encounter encourages Sylvia to go searching for a chest which is suppose to contain a quilt made by her Great-Grandmother Anneke. Not only does Sylvia find the quilt, she finds another and a diary written by her great Aunt Gerda. As Sylvia reads the journal, she discovers several stories from her childhood are true, others have been exaggerated or changed over telling and of her ancestors involvement in the underground railway.

Once again Jennifer Chiaverini has managed to keep the Elm Creek series interesting by making the main focus of the book someone other than the already familiar characters. Being Australian, I don't know a lot of American history, but I was aware of the issue of slave ownership, the eventual war between north and south and how which side of the border you were on was not necessarily indicative of your views on the matter. This novel did teach me more about how slaves tried to escape and the difficulties they faced. I always assumed if they made it over the border into the north, they were safe. Instead, they had to be able to make it all the way to Canada. Even northerners who assisted escaped slaves were able to be prosecuted. Despite it's light weight feel, The Runaway Quilt gave me much to think about - not only in terms of slavery and escape, but the role of quilting and sewing in American history.

Cross Country Quilters

The Cross Country Quilters by Jennifer Chiaverini

The third in the Elm Creek Quilts series  and such a easy read after Great Expectations! Although I swear this series is bad for my health. Once again I stayed up to stupid hours to finish it, something I now regretting late on Friday afternoon with two kids who have been cooped up inside for the better part of the week due to wet weather - but I digress!

The Cross Country Quilters follows five of the quilt camp participants over a year. When they first meet at an Elm Creek Quilt Camp, they are all facing challenges in their lives. They form a friendship over the week and promise to return a year later, a block completed to be made into a group quilt and their challenges met, if not solved.

This is the first book in the series where the characters are not those who run Elm Creek. I found it refreshing to met new characters and follow their stories. I must admit one of the things that does concern me about such a prolific series (there are currently 14 books with more planned) is there is only so much tragedy/ life changing moments/ disasters one set of characters can go through. By following campers, Chiaverini was still able to incorporate Elm Creek and still move away from it's borders.

You could read this as a stand alone easily since it mostly deals with separate characters. For me personally, I find it impossible to read a series of books out of order. In fact, I find it hard to read an authors unconnected works out of order. You should see the dilemma George Lucas put me in by release Star Wars episodes 1, 2, and 3 after 4, 5 and 6!

Round Robin

Round Robin by Jennifer Chiaverini is the second in the Elm Creek Quilters series. This came into the library at the perfect time. I was about half way through Great Expectations and in desperate need of a break!

The first book in the series focussed on Sarah and Sylvia. This book allows you to find out more about each of the quilters and their story.

The group decides to make a Round Robin quilt as a surprise for Sylvia to hang in the entrance hall of the manor. A Round Robin quilt is made by a group of quilters. Each quilter adds a border, passing it onto the next participant once they have finished, so they too can add to it. As each quilter in the story adds their border, they are also faced with a dilemma in their lives. As each issue is dealt with, the border comes to represent the struggle and the sewers family and friends who help them along the way.

While you could read this as a stand alone, you would miss out on some things - like why Andrew is so significant in Sylvia's life or why Sarah and her mother struggle to get along. The story is significantly different enough from the first that you don't end up feeling like you have already read the book and moves the characters along, adding dimensions and depth to those introduced in the first book. Once again, not a taxing read, but an enjoyable one. Looking forward to the next!