Book Review: The Last Runaway by Tracy Chevalier

I was flipping through an issue of Ohio Magazine when I saw an interview of the author of this book. Since there was a large photo of the book cover, that was what I noticed first. You know how sometimes your mind skims things and tries to fill in the pieces, often misinterpreting them? Since there was an image of a woman in period clothes, since the word “Runaway” was in the title, and since the author’s last name was long and had “C H V plus some Es and an A” I assumed it was about Jennifer Chiaverini, whose books I have reviewed on this blog.

I realized my mistake right away, read the article, and learned that the book was set in Ohio (where I’ve lived all my life!), was about a quilter (I like to quilt!), and was set in the 1850s and dealt with slavery and the Underground Railroad (OK, not a personal connection but I have recently enjoyed reading books set during the Civil War). I hadn’t read any other books by Tracy Chevalier but I sought this one out and I’m very glad I did as I really enjoyed it.

The story is about Honor Bright, a young Quaker woman who has just emigrated to Ohio from England. Aside from having to get used to living in a new country with people she’s never met, she also questions the local Quaker’s views on slavery and their actions and reactions to it.

Since Tracy attended a Quaker camp as a child, she was familiar with their practices. She also attended Oberlin College in Ohio, so she had a personal history with the area. Both of these connections made the story feel more authentic. Another aspect that I enjoyed about this book is how the story is told as a third-person narrative but every chapter is sandwiched with a with a first person letter, usually written from Honor’s point-of-view.

Honor not only notices how different the Ohio flora and fauna is from her native country, but also the quilting styles. She is used to doing English Paper Piecing and patchwork, while the Quakers in Ohio seem to do a lot of red and green appliqué quilts. Honor thinks that the appliqué work is simpler and easier than what she’s used to doing although I personally haven’t made an entire quilt using traditional appliqué as I think it’s pretty difficult.  

It was interesting to find on Tracy’s website under the section about “The Last Runaway” that there are links to Pintrest boards that Tracy has set up with photos of examples of English, American, Red and White, and African American quilts.

Book Reviews: "Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker" by Jennifer Chiaverini and an autobiography of Elizabeth Keckley, Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker

If you're a regular reader of Jennifer Chiaverini's books then her recent book "Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker" might seen a little different. Not only is it not an Elm Creek Book novel, it's based on an actual person, Elizabeth Keckley, a former slave who became Mrs. Lincoln's dressmaker.

Because Jennifer relied heavily on Elizabeth's own memoir "Behind the Scenes or, Thirty Years a Slave, and Four Years in the White House." I decided to read both books. And even though the memoir was originally published in 1868, it is still available today.

Although there is a lot of overlap in the two books, "Behind the Scenes" covers more of Elizabeth's life before she became Mrs. Lincoln's dressmaker. It includes her time growing up as a slave, how she was able to save enough money to buy her freedom and also the freedom of her son George, and how she moved to Washington D.C. as a free woman to become a dressmaker. "Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker" includes what happens to Elizabeth after her memoirs were published.

Elizabeth first met Mrs. Lincoln on the day of President Lincoln's first inauguration. She remained as her dressmaker until shortly after the president was assassinated. It was after that time that Elizabeth was encouraged to write her memoirs, and although she thought she was presenting Mrs. Lincoln in a good light, Mrs. Lincoln wasn't pleased with the memoir and cut off all contact after that. Sadly, the book got bad reviews and Elizabeth never many any money from it.

Along with reading both books, I was able to attend a lecture and book signing sponsored by the Warren County Historical Society when Jennifer was at the Golden Lamb in Lebanon, Ohio, in January 2013. She's a gracious and entertaining speaker and it was interesting to hear about her process for writing this book.

It is believed that she made a quilt using the scraps from Mrs. Lincoln's dresses. That quilt is owned by the Kent State University Museum although it is my understanding that it is not displayed regularly.

We recently took a trip to Washington DC and the Smithonian National Museum of American History has an exhibit of dresses worn by the first lady. The purple velvet dress (left) that was worn by Mrs. Lincoln is believed to be made by Elizabeth.

Before we went on our trip we watched the movie "Lincoln" and Elizabeth is a character in the movie, although you wouldn't know that she was a dressmaker.

On a personal note, Elizabeth's son George attended Wilberforce University before he enlisted in the Union Army where he died during the Civil War. In 1892 Elizabeth taught dressmaking at Wilberforce, which is about 10 miles from where I live.

Here's a link to an article in the New York Times about Elizabeth Keckley.

Book Review: The Giving Quilt, Jennifer Chiaverini

One of the things that I’ve admired about Jennifer Chiaverini’s books are how she can remain true to the Elm Creek Quilts novel series but still have ways to branch out in new directions with new characters. Her latest book The Giving Quilt takes place at Elm Creek Manor with many of our favorite characters present to lead a quilting retreat the week after Thanksgiving.

Instead of workshops covering different quilting techniques, the quilters are all making quilts to donate to Project Linus, a real organization that collects handmade quilts and blankets to distribute to children in need.

The first chapter introduces us to five new characters from different parts of the country who are attending “Quiltsgiving” this year: Pauline, Linnea, Michaela, Jocelyn, and Karen. Then each character gets to tell her story and struggles in her own chapter. The final chapters cover how the characters resolve to deal with these struggles and how the act of quilting and the act of giving help them move forward.

Like all of Jennifer’s books, there are some characters who we’ve seen before. Karen was one of the quilting instructors who applied to teach at Elm Creek in Circle of Quilters. It is also mentioned that Michaela’s mother attended Elm Creek, but I’m not sure if she was a specific character or not.

I recently re-read Jennifer’s historical books (The Sugar Camp Quilt, The Runaway Quilt, The Lost Quilter, and The Union Quilters)  to have a better grasp of how the characters and events relate to each other Because some of those characters names were fresh in my head I noticed a few clues that might develop in future books.

It is mentioned that Linnea’s husband Kevin’s has a distant cousin who mentioned had attended a Nelson family reunion that took place at Elm Creek Manor. Thomas and Dorthea Nelson are characters in the historical books. And Jocelyn, an African-American character, has a family getaway in North Carolina. The description of that place sounds very similar to the place where Johanna, a runaway slave who appears in The Runaway Quilt and whose story is told in The Lost Quilter.

The Giving Quilt is being released today and is available in hardback.

Book Review: Sonoma Rose by Jennifer Chiaverini

As a quilter, I enjoy reading novels about quilters and quilt themes. I’ve been reading Jennifer Chiaverini’s Elm Creek Quilts novels since The Quilter’s Apprentice first came out in 2000. When Round Robin, the second book in the series came out, I decided that Jennifer was a genius. She’d set up the premise of a quilter’s retreat in the first book but would be able to write books that followed the people who attended the retreat, have her characters move to different locations, and sometimes the narrative follows a quilt as it travels across the country.

Several of the books are set in the past, featuring relatives of the main character and sometimes specific quilts that were made in the historical books but still around in the contemporary books.

Jennifer’s latest book Sonoma Rose is set in southern California in the 1920s, specifically in wine country during Prohibition. The Elm Creek connection is that the main character, Rosa Barclay, is an acquaintance of Elizabeth Nelson, the favorite aunt of Sylvia Compson, the main characters and master quilter in the series. Elizabeth’s story is told in The Quilter’s Homecoming. While reading Sonoma Rose I really wanted to re-read The Quilter’s Homecoming to see how the stories cross over.

While I enjoy the contemporary Elm Creek novels, I like reading the historical books because they offer me a glimpse into what life was like in another place during another time and I often find myself learning new things.

There isn’t a lot about quilting in Sonoma Rose but in some ways there are some quilts that are a catalyst for what occurs in the book.

While there are the usual themes expected in a book set during prohibition such as bootlegging and mobsters, there are several contemporary themes including abusive spouses, Celiac disease, and alcoholism. I found the characters were complex and well developed and once I finished the book I found that the characters stayed in my head.

Sonoma Rose is being released today and is available in hardback.