New Book: Civil War Quilts

Last year at the Southern California Genealogical Society Jamboree we had the pleasure of hearing Don Beld speak at the Quilt Breakfast. Don, a popular speaker and quilt historian has a new book out with quilt historian Pam Weeks, entitled Civil War Quilts.

According to the publisher's website,  "With over 170 photos and an engaging text, this books tells the stories of fourteen extraordinary Civil War quilts and the women who made them." The book includes 45 patterns.

Having heard Don speak multiple times I imagine this is going to be a great book for those of us interested in the American Civil War and quilt history.

Quilt Read: Heart for a Hero by Ed Ditto and Laura D Patrick

The Genea-Quilters went on a field trip during the FGS 2010 conference to a quilt store, Mammaw's Thimble Fabric and Quilt Shop and while there my friend Madaleine Laird picked up a book for me. Heart for a Hero by Ed Ditto and Laura D Patrick combines family history, quilting and life as a mother all into one story that ends with a Korean veteran getting the acknowledgment he deserves.

First let me say that I enjoyed this book very much.  I typically don't read a lot of fiction but this story speaks to the all too often problem of our veterans not getting the credit they deserve.  I don't want to give to much away about the book but this is the story of PJ Hathaway and her life as a mom to two small kids and her talent for quilting. Her life is given a jolt of mystery when a package addressed to her grandmother, who has been dead for years, arrives in the mail.  The book is about PJ, her hubsand Ross and her friends discovering who the sender of the package is and why he was important to her grandmother.  But it is also the story of two veterans and their sacrifices during the Korean war that included stays in POW camps.  There is some family history in the book, but once again I don't want to give away the story too much.

This is a difficult book to read, emotionally.  There are descriptions of POW camp life, while not as graphic as it could be it's still hard to read of the experience of these fictional soldiers, that I'm sure must mirror real soldiers. The main character, PJ is experiencing a hard time in her life prior to the arrival of the package. Her difficulties increase as the story goes on. However, her quilting talent allows her to insure that one soldier is given the credit he deserves.  Her solution is one that might be something other quilters may want to consider for a favorite cause.

This is a book that I didn't want to put down. I would have liked to have read it in 1 day but ended up taking 2 days, since I had to feed my own children ;).

Heart for a Hero is available through Amazon. This book is published by American Quilter's Society (AQS) Publishing. It is also available from AQS.

What's Your Favorite Quilt Read?

I love quilt books. I even have some that mix genealogy with quilting. My favorite quilt magazine is Quilter's Home. This magazine is fun and has great articles. It's very different than your everyday quilt magazine.

My favorite quilt books are those that involve the state quilt documentation projects. One example is North Carolina Quilts. These books are great because they not only tell the history of quilts in that state but they include the maker's photograph and bio. These are a great genealogical source for finding information on women's lives.


So what is your favorite quilt read?