I’m currently working on a book about California, so I’m on the lookout for all things Californian. Imagine my delight when I found THE ELEPHANT QUILT: STITCH BY STITCH TO CALIFORNIA! by Susan Lowell (Melanie Kroupa Books, Farrar Straus Giroux, 2008). Susan is the author of some of my other favorite books including THE THREE LITTLE JAVELINAS.
Lily Rose and her grandma stitch a quilt as they travel from Missouri to California by covered wagon in 1859. An Author’s Note supplies readers with the background for the idea of the book. (I’m a nut about Author’s Notes. Love them.) Every fourth grade teacher in California will want this book and everyone who studies westward movement will find this a helpful addition to their school or classroom library.
Those who love quilt books will want to add the book to their favorite quilt stories including SWEET CLARA AND THE FREEDOM QUILT by Deborah Hopkinson, THE QUILT STORY by Tony Johnston, The JOSEFINA STORY QUILT by Eleanor Coerr, THE PATCHWORK QUILT by Valerie Flournoy, THE KINDNESS QUILT by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace, SAM JOHNSON AND THE BLUE RIBBON QUILT by Lisa Campbell Ernst, LUKA’S QUILT by Georgia Guba, THE KEEPING QUILT by Patricia Polacco . . . okay . . . you get the idea! (By the way, Patricia Polacco’s website (www.patriciapolacco.com) is a favorite.)
I hope people find their way to this book . . . Whoop-De-Doo!
As for me, I enjoyed the morning at the swap meet and then took my mom to World Famous for brunch. (One of my favorite ocean-side restaurants.)
