"What's important is the past": Absalom's Daughters by Suzanne Feldman

In the Jim Crow South of the 1950s two girls find their reflection in each other's faces. Although one is black and one white they share the same father-- 'skirt-chasing, adulteratin' white trash'--who has abandoned both families. A rumor comes to town that their father is to inherit a legacy, and being 'progeny' the girls are encouraged to find their father and demand their inheritance.

Sixteen-year-old Judith is white, uneducated, and devastatingly poor. What she possesses is a beautiful talent for singing. Hearing the Negro music aired from New York City--only at night due to its scandalous sexuality--Judith longs to go to New York and become a famous singer.

Cassie, fifteen and cinnamon in color, lives with her grandmother and mother, a hardworking laundress. Grandmother determined that her daughter--and plans for her granddaughter--to take white lovers with the expectation of diluting their African blood until they can pass as white. Cassie's mother hopes to spare her daughter this indignation, encouraging her to follow Judith's quest for the father and leave town.

The story of the girls' road trip across the south is delightful reading, episodic with wonderful characters and twists and memorable characters.

Early in the story Cassie meets Ovid Beale who tells her that mules 'useter be colored folk'; it is easier for colored folk to turn into a mule because they are 'already half one thing and half another.' And it is this theme of passing between two worlds, the legacy of slavery making colored folks black but not black, appearing white while being deemed legally black, that informs the story.

On their travels each sister acts out different roles according to the expectations of the audience and what they need to do to survive. Cassie acts the black servant to Judith, then tries passing as white, learning about herself and deciding on her future. Cassie learns that what is important is the past, to never forget her roots.

It took time for me to get hooked to the story, then it picked up considerably. The characters are interesting and Feldman has an original take on the timeless theme of race and identity in America.

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

Absalom's Daughters
by Suzanne Feldman
Henry Holt & Co,
Publication July 5, 2016
$26 hard cover
ISBN: 9781627794534

Remembering the Reason

It is not about the fireworks, barbecued hot dogs, family gatherings, or parades. Let us remember that first July 4 and what our patriot forefathers embarked upon.

We often watch our DVD of the musical 1776 which we saw live at Independence Hall in Philly back in 1976.









Start a new book on American history:

Read Nathaniel Philbrick's Bunker Hill and Valiant Ambition to learn what you never knew about the American Revolution.

http://theliteratequilter.blogspot.com/2014/05/when-yankees-realized-they-had-declared.html

http://theliteratequilter.blogspot.com/2016/05/valiant-ambition-by-nathaniel-philbrick.html

Or David McCullough's 1776 which I read before I was reviewing books.
http://books.simonandschuster.com/1776/David-McCullough/9780743226721

Find more Revolutionary War books at
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/revolutionary-war







To learn more about how our government was honed over time read Madison's Gift: Five Friendships that Built America
http://theliteratequilter.blogspot.com/2015/02/madisons-gift-five-partnerships-that.html










For a fictional look behind the scenes try a novel like The Midwife's Revolt by Jodi Daynard.

http://theliteratequilter.blogspot.com/2015/04/meanwhile-back-in-braintree.html







You can also have fun researching the Revolution in other ways.

Check out your ancestry. You may have a Revolutionary hero in the family! My husband did:
http://theliteratequilter.blogspot.com/2015/11/william-nelson-revolutionary-war-soldier.html

Collect textiles that celebrate American history, including handkerchiefs, linens and quilts.

http://theliteratequilter.blogspot.com/2012/07/independence-day.html

Learn about Patriotic quilts.

http://theliteratequilter.blogspot.com/2016/02/quilts-presidential-and-patriotic-by.html

And--yes--enjoy those hot dogs, fireworks, and family gatherings! Best wishes for a joyous and safe July 4 celebration.

Bobby Kennedy: The Making of a Liberal Icon by Larry Tye

Last month, on the anniversary of the shooting of Bobby Kennedy, I wrote about how it had affected me and my schoolmates. The day before I had finished reading Larry Tye's new biography Bobby Kennedy: The Making of a Liberal Icon.

I had requested the book because of the title and its reference to the growth, politically and personally, behind his becoming the man whose death meant so much to my generation.

Tye reminds us of Bobby before was a crusader for the poor, before his determination to heal the racial divide: the commie hating, law and order, political operative who worked for family friend Senator Joseph McCarthy and approved wire-taping Martin Luther King, Jr. The Bobby who wanted to bring down Jimmy Hoffa and Fidel Castro.

The expectations of his father and the examples of his older brothers meant Bobby was filling the roles set out for him. Until the death of his brother President John Kennedy, a blow that sent Bobby spiraling into grief but also freed him to explore his own path and seek his own way.

Bobby was a complex man with many 'sides' and Tye brings all to life, marking each stride in Bobby's growing maturity and wisdom.

It was Bobby's empathy and determination to act against injustice that has immortalized him. "Lets face it, I appeal best to people who have problems," he remarked during his presidential run. But it was no PR act. He truly loved children. He was enraged by the poverty he encountered and that he deemed was worse than what he had seen abroad. And he was courageous, fearless. His extemporized speech to a nearly all-black crowd, telling them about the assassination of of MLK, was an eloquent and poetic plea for compassion.

"What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence and lawlessness, but is love, and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice towards those who still suffer within our county, whether they be white or whether they be black. So I ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King...but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country...for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke."

Bobby was not a perfect man and he made errors and misjudgments. But this biography shows us how an individual, through life experience and growth in wisdom, became the moral compass of a people. Could a President Bobby Kennedy have altered America's trajectory? All I know is that his message needs to be heard again today.

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

Bobby Kennedy: The Making of a Liberal Icon
by Larry Tye
Random House
$32.00 hard cover
Publication Date: July 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-812-99334-9

Modern Roots:Today's Quilts from Yesterday's Inspiration by Bill Volckening

Note the vintage quilt on the wall and the
modern interpretation on the chair

In the introduction to Modern Roots, Bill Volckening quotes Jonathan Holstein's 1973 book The Pieced Quilt: An American Design Tradition noting that antique and vintage quilts sometimes appear to be uncannily modern in design. Bill expanded on this concept in his 2014 lecture Masterpiece Quilts: Modernism in American Patchwork--or, "There's Something Modern About that Quilt."

When Jacqueline Sava reproduced a 1870s Crossroads quilt it confirmed Bill's thinking that "Old quilts were rich with information and inspiration for today's quilters."

Drawing from his extensive private collection of American quilts he selected twelve, dating from 1840 to 1970, to explore the characteristics of modernism including minimalism,importance of negative space, use of solid colors and limited palette, and geometric design.

The quilts are varied: scrappy or showing controlled color use; flamboyant or with large areas of negative space; familiar patterns with a twist and the rare and unusual.

 A simple 1840 medallion quilt has multiple borders of alternating red and white with a circular central block of appliquéd "Sprigs of Photinia." There are three Log Cabin variations. A Lone Star quilt has broken stars in the corners. Pieced blocks include Indiana Puzzle, Shadow Box, and an unusual New York Beauty variation. Radiating Fans create a secondary pattern. Airplane blocks with sashing is representational. Stacked Bars is scrappy and primitive.

There is a full page color photograph of each quilt with its source, date, and materials and an article addressing the quilt's design and background.

The detailed instructions include a material list, cutting and construction directions, and color illustrations showing the steps of construction. Smaller versions of the full size quilts are offered as are photographs of newly made quilts based on the instructions.

Volckening has replicated the original construction methods for the quilts. Several patterns are good for those with some piecing experience, but some are better for those with advanced skills.

Volkening is an award-winning photographer, quiltmaker, and blogger. The Volckening Collection of quilts include impressive examples from all time periods and styles.

Learn more about Crossroads to Bachelor Hall by reading Volckening's article to learn more about this quilt at http://www.academia.edu/24535757/Cross_Roads_to_Bachelors_Hall
and on his blog at
http://willywonkyquilts.blogspot.com/2011/06/mystery-pattern-clue.html

I received a free book from C&T Publications in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

http://www.ctpub.com/modern-roots-todays-quilts-from-yesterdays-inspiration/

Shakespeare Retold: Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler

The Hogarth Press, founded by Virginia and Leonard Woolf in 1917, launched the Hogarth Shakespeare project last year. Acclaimed and best selling contemporary novelists are retelling the Bard's stories for modern audiences.

Anne Tyler's Vinegar Girl is based on The Taming of the Shrew. The play has been adapted into movies and the Broadway musical Kiss Me, Kate and is the inspiration behind 10 Things I Hate About You.

Vinegar Girl introduces us to the quirky Battista family. Kate is a college drop out working as a teacher's assistant and running the house for her eccentric scientist father and younger vacuous sister Bunny.

Kate's father has a problem. His valued assistant Pyotr Shcherbakov's O-1 visa is ending. Kate's dad has hatched a plan to match Kate and Pyotr, if not for love at least for a marriage of convenience. After all, at twenty-nine Kate has no other suitors. Kate is beautiful, but as her employer puts it, she is lacking tact, restraint, and diplomacy. Her directness delights her preschool charges, but gets her in trouble with their parents.

Pyotr is no charmer himself. He is attractive, but for all his research ability he is unwittingly disorganized and is oblivious about appearances. Pyotr seems cheerful, but he is lonely and homesick and his life is 'meager.'

Tyler's story is funny and her characters interesting. It is a wild ride to the altar, with stolen lab mice and fist fights. The book is light and fluffy, a nice beach read. The misogyny of the original story is gone. Tyler has given us a happy ending where two misfits allow each other space to be themselves.

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

Vinegar Girl
by Anne Tyler
Hogarth/Crown Publishing
publication date June 21, 2016
$25 hard cover
ISBN: 9780804141260

Quilts Inspired by the National Parks

I was so excited about the concept of Inspired by the National Parks. The quilt on the cover was a big selling point for someone who loves landscape quilts.

To celebrate the anniversary of our 59 National Parks, Donna Marcinkowski DeSoto brought together quilters to create 177 original art quilts depicting the landscape, flora, and fauna of each park. Accompanying articles by park rangers and park personnel brings to life the people who preserve and protect our cherished shared lands.

Throughout the book the author quotes John Muir, the "Father of the National Parks." Known as the founder of the Sierra Club, Muir was a true devotee of nature as a source of spiritual revitalization. Through his writings, he educated America about our natural wonders and called for their preservation.

DeSoto gave the quilt artists a choice of park and category and size restrictions of 20 x 44 or 44 x 20 for landscape quilts and 20 x 20 for the flora and fauna quilts. The artists could not use commercial patterns, so each quilt is an original design by that artist. An artist statement accompanies each photographed quilt.

The quilts are wonderfully varied. With amazing use of fabric and construction there are realistic quilts, interpretive visions, humorous depictions, flowers and animals in natural settings or portrayed apart.

The parks are identified by location, date of establishment, a brief description of high points, and a link to the National Park Service website for the park.

Including statements from park rangers was brilliant. We learn first hand about the park, what the people who work there love most about the park, and the park's attractions for tourists. The joy and love of work shines through the statements.

This is a beautiful book whose appeal reaches beyond quilters, a celebration of our precious natural heritage. 

Resources are offered at the end of the book, including links to the Junior Ranger Program, volunteer programs, Artist-in-Residence Program and donating to the NPS.

DeSoto's previous book was Inspired by the Beatles: An Art Quilt Challenge published by Schiffer Publications.

All illustrating photographs are from Schiffer Publication.

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

Inspired by the National Parks: Their Landscapes and Wildlife in Fabric Perspectives

by Donna Marcinkowski DeSoto

Schiffer Publications

$34.99 hardcover

ISBN: 9780764351198

Bird of Friendship Appliqué Pattern

Here is a sweet block from Blue Ribbon Patterns p-130, published in 1974 by Tower Press.

Bird of Friendship Quilt

This quilt is a original idea of Lauraine Smith. Since so many of you ladies are interested in friendship quilts, I'm sure this pattern will make a unique and different quilt and a fine keepsake.

This quilt takes 14 blocks, each block measuring 12 inches square, plus a seven inch border at the top and sides and a 14 inch border at the bottom.

Materials needed are: yellow for the blocks, blue for the birds, white for the envelopes, and pink for the border.

Baste and stitch bird and envelope on each of the yellow squares. Use a ball point pen to mark features, seams, etc. of it you wish they may be embroidered.  Make patterns from drawings and allow for seams.

Lauraine M. Smith, 21 Withee Avenue, Madison, Maine 04950

Researching Lauraine M. Smith on ancestry.com shows she was born in 1915 and died April 9, 2000. I found her pattern also appeared in the July, 1968 Stitch/Sew magazine  I did not discover anything more about her.