Alice Bullock is a young newlywed whose husband, Charlie, has just joined the Union Army, leaving her on his Iowa farm with only his formidable mo...
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reviews
Oct 11, 2011
Rachel
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Story of the young wife of a civil war soldier that is written in the form of letters to her sister. I really liked it at first (thus 2 stars rather than 1). I loved the language and the naivety of the heroine as she has to get along with her mother-in-law and the townspeople after husband leaves to fight.
But the voice of the story changed as it progressed. It became more mundane and the heroine's behavior became annoying. Then towards the end there is a plot event that changes the More...
But the voice of the story changed as it progressed. It became more mundane and the heroine's behavior became annoying. Then towards the end there is a plot event that changes the More...
Mar 16, 2011
Keilani
rated it: 
I liked Persian Pickle Club more, I liked Buster's Midnight Cafe less. I usually don't give a summary because you can read that everywhere, but I have to give a bit of one to explain what I see. The main character, Alice, is left with her cranky mother-in-law on a farm near the middle of nowhere when her husband joins up to fight for the Union. She has been married about a year and when she married him, he worked in a store. She specifically did not marry a farmer, having been raised on a fa
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Jan 13, 2011
Kayla
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This book is the most god-awful abomination on the face of the earth, next to the Twilight series. I had to read it for a history project and I was appalled. The main character Alice is a Mary-Sue. She's 100% perfect and possesses no flaws whatsoever. All the men in the town want her for themselves while her husband is at war and Alice does nothing to stop their advances. The book has no plot, even though the summary suggests otherwise. The whole "murder" theme doesn't even become appa
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Sep 02, 2011
Camille
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I would say maybe even 3.5 stars. I have liked other books by Sandra Dallas better than this one--although I couldn't put it down. I think it's because I like Dallas' other books so much that I was hopeful that it would get better--and it did. As in the Persian Pickle Club, there are many quilting references. Even for a non-quilter--I really liked that.
The book is written in first person by Alice, and it is all written in the style of letters to her sister. I really enjoy that s More...
The book is written in first person by Alice, and it is all written in the style of letters to her sister. I really enjoy that s More...
Jul 21, 2011
Susan
rated it: 
This is the second novel I have ready by Sandra Dallas. She writes in an usual style, usually first person woman. It is written in early American slang so once you get the rhythm of the language the stories are very funny and you can hear them speaking. This novel takes place in Civil war and pioneer Iowa and features quilting as its uniting theme. By the title you would think it was about gardening but it is definitely a quilting novel. Quilting unites women in a way that shows the suppo
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Jan 23, 2012
Melinda
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Although I have enjoyed the other books that I have read by Sandra Dallas, this one seemed lackluster in comparison. I struggled with the inconsistencies in Alice's character; as some points, she appeared too modern for a Civil War soldier's wife. I was equally bothered by Alice's almost perfect grammar, aside from a few out of place what appeared to be forced errors in speech - this did not fit with her character to me. I think that the idea of telling the story through the medium of Alice's
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Oct 18, 2010
Anne Hawn
rated it:
I really enjoyed this book. It was told through letters that Alice wrote to her sister. Alice was a young woman married for 1 year whose young husband has gone to fight as a Union soldier in the Civil War. She is living with her mother-in-law, a taciturn and critical somewhat elderly woman. They live in a small farm just outside a village in Iowa and the story gives a fairly good idea of the lives women led at the time. The sexual references are almost certainly inaccurate and would be best
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Nov 08, 2010
Shauna
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Although I have enjoyed Sandra Dallas' books in the past, this one was not up to par for me. Most of the Dallas basics are here: a setting on a poor farm/homestead, mostly women characters, a dark mystery, Civil War era, and quilting. She tries something different here by going for an epistolary novel, which I usually enjoy, but the narrator/letter writer in this case is shallow, callous, and trash-talking Alice Bullock. I realized that she starts out so irritating so that we can watch her gr
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Nov 03, 2011
Cindy
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If the words accompanying a 5-star rating weren't so gushy, I'd use it more. How about "I loved it"? Being a Sandra Dallas fan, I was happy to find this book, even happier to read it. Don't fear historical fiction; this was down-to-earth, humorous, informative, with a couple of twists. Set in Civil War time, it details the life of Alice Bullock after her new husband Charlie joins the Union army, leaving her to live with his mother. Quilting is one activity that sees her through th
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Apr 09, 2010
April
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Written in letters from Alice to her sister Lizzy, this book tells the story of a newly married and young soldiers wife used to society, who's husband goes off to fight for the Union while she stays behind with his mother in a small town on a farm. I enjoyed the references to quilting and how Alice grew from a naive flirty young girl to running a farm practically on her own. There are some odd references to sexuality in the book which I could have done without. I am not giving anything away in s
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Aug 20, 2007
April
rated it:
Alice's letters to her sister while her husband Charlie is away to fight for the Union in the Civil war. I love the interactions between Alice and Charlie's mother and couldn't put down the book until Charlie came home.
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Nov 28, 2011
Sorcha
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It took me a while to get into the writing style - it is where one sister (Alice) writes letters to her sister Lizzie. Some of it is a little forced (reminding her sister as to how many brothers they've got for instance) in order to get the back story in, but it's minor and soon got over.[return][return]The letters are one sided (you never get to read the replies) and tells of two years on a farm with Alice, her mother in law and various waifs and strays, all whilst Charlie is off fighting in t
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Mar 30, 2010
Wendy
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The basic storyline is really good (young wife, civil war, separation, ornery mother-in-law...)but then the author has to try to throw in some sexuality. It never gets graphic but it is just so not a part of that era. I cannot imagine in the 1800's that a women would ever write about "romping" with her husband in a letter to her sister. Romance would have been fine if it had made sense. It kind of "dumbed down" the book for me. I also felt an under current of the authors own
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Oct 25, 2011
Erika
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This book is about a newlywed named Alice, she lives with her husband's mother on Bramble Farm during the Civil war era. During the story she is accused of murder and is shunned from society in the town of Slatyfork. The entire book is letters to her sister.
When I first read what this book was about I though this might be good. I thought there would be more action with the murder but I was wrong. I even tried to like Alice but that was nearly impossible. She was a terrible person. She told More...
When I first read what this book was about I though this might be good. I thought there would be more action with the murder but I was wrong. I even tried to like Alice but that was nearly impossible. She was a terrible person. She told More...
Apr 15, 2011
Carol
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Although I just started reading a few Sandra Dallas' books, this one was ok for me. There is a poor farm, primarily women characters, a mystery, written in the Civil War era, and quilting. The main character Alice, evolves during the book and "grows" up during the book. Still, there were things I really liked about the book--the mother-in-law is a great character, as is Annie, and Dallas is indeed a good storyteller. One of the books I've enjoyed of all lately is the Guernsey Literary
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Sep 25, 2009
Alana
rated it:
Apparently a good book is hard to come by lately! Alice's character is really shallow which I found irritating. The book is written in letter form to her sister during the Civil War era. The things that matter to Alice shouldn't matter at all. But what is worse is that even though her husband gets sent off to war, Alice doesn't seem to mind as she tells him not to worry if he doesn't come back as she can always find another husband. Then she complains why he won't write to her which cracked
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Apr 15, 2009
Dana
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Another great book by a very talented author. Set in the Civil War, a young bride is left by her husband as he goes to war. She lives with her mother-in-law on a farm in southern Iowa. There is plenty of conflict between the two women, as well as various townsfolk when Alice is suspected of murder. It's a good glimpse into the day to day life of a woman during this time period. There's also a lot of info on quilting, as Alice keeps herself centered by making quilts. I highly recommend this to an
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Oct 04, 2010
Pamela
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I really enjoy how Sandra Dallas's stories are usually told from a quilter's perspective. I don't quilt, but my grandmother did and my mother still does. This time, the story of Alice was told exclusively through Alice's Civil War-time letters to her sister while her husband was at war. Alice's husband joined up shortly after they married and Alice spent the war years trying to keep the farm going with her disapproving mother-in-law. As the war stretched on, Alice grows from an immature and
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Feb 08, 2012
Janine
rated it:
You would like this book if you enjoy novels from a personal point of view. The book is set in the 1860s during the Civil War. The main character Alice Bullock is forced to run her husband's farm while he is away fighting with the Union arm. The book is told through letters Alice writes to her sister Lizzie. In letters Alice she writes about her life in a new town. Throughout the book you learn about the responsibilities women had to face. The book also has mystery in it because Alice is accuse
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Jun 08, 2011
Jane
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I read this in honor of the 150 anniversary of the start of the War Between the States. The story is told in letters written by a young woman, Alice, in the Iowa territory to her sister in Galena. Alice is newly married and her husband has enlisted to fight for the Union. The letters tell of Alice's life on a farm with her gruff mother-in-law. Quilts and quilting provide a backdrop to the story.
I enjoy Sandra Dallas' books -- she does a lot of research and she tells a good stor
I enjoy Sandra Dallas' books -- she does a lot of research and she tells a good stor
May 24, 2011
Christy
rated it:
I love Sandra Dallas' books but this has been my least favorite so far. That's not to say that I didn't like it. Dallas took a different approach to writing the story, this time through letters written by the main character Alice to her sister. While Dallas included some twists at the end, they weren't as dramatic as some of her other books so I was disappointed because that's my favorite part of her stories. This book is still good though and I'm glad I read it. Rated PG 13
Feb 10, 2012
Toni
rated it:
Although this book is quick and easy read and the format in which it is written is unique and kind of interesting (not many books are written as a series of letters) it is not the greatest book I've read. The plot is slow and boring. I wouldn't recommend it to someone unless they are interested in history or are studying the civil war period. Overall, the book was boring, but was short and historically accurate enough to read as a supplement to someone studying America during the Civil War.
Jan 16, 2012
Lena
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This was my book club read for April. A great read! A bit hard to get into at first but I think that was because of the other books I had been reading at the time. I loved how descriptive the author was. I felt each and every emotion that Alice did. A bit embarrassing reading this book in public though lol I was at my daughters gymnastics class and it took everything I had not to cry. It was a little predictable but I didn't mind so much because the writing is fantastic.
Oct 08, 2010
Denise
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This is a book solely written in the form of letters from a young wife to her sister during the civil war. The reader gains great insight into both Alice's life as well as her sister's and her "soldier-boy" young husband. Alice's trials, her maturation and her lively spirit make the book hard to put down. She is a convincing self-centered soiled teenager at the beginning and become quite admirable by the end. I would recommend to others who enjoy historic fiction.
Mar 04, 2009
Beth
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This is one of my favourite books. Set during the American civil war, it's about the relationship between a young war bride and her mother-in-law, and a coming of age story. Told through letters sent to her sister, mother, and new husband, we see the evolution of a young girl into a young woman. It is wonderfully sculpted and beautifully told, with a very distinct voice. I loved this book, and often buy it to give to girlfriends for birthdays or other occasions.
Sep 20, 2011
Julene
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Fun read. Set during the Civil War and written as a series of letters to protagonists sister. Has a bit of suspense to make it fun. I liked the progression of the main character who I didn't love during the beginning of the book. I have my doubts about whether some of the slightly scandalous topics in her letters where commonly discussed during that time and would not let my daughter read this until she was in high school or older.
Mar 07, 2009
Sarah
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I forgot I had this book. Now I remember why I do. I enjoy the growth and self-realization of the heroine. I like the story-telling device (her letters to her sister) and that with only a few lines we get almost a full picture of her sister's story as well. It's earthy, but I like a bit of frankness. It does remind me that for as much as we lament "society" today, I would much rather be living right when and where I am.
Apr 26, 2011
Lizpeveto
rated it:
This is a wonderful author whose books are short and lots of emphasis on quilting. They are all a delightful read and this one is about a young woman who chronicles her life in letters to her sister. She marries quickly and her young husband goes off to the Civil War leaving her w/ her mother-in-law. Their struggles to maintain the farm w/ just themselves are realistic and prove how self sufficient woman have always been.
Feb 08, 2012
Hannah
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Although slow in the beginning, this book really picked up. It included in-depth descriptions on quilting, so if you like that this is your book. The book is a compilation of letters from Alice, who is the wife of a farmer in the American civil war, to her sister about all aspects of her life at home. Written in a very conversational way, it is understandable, but can be boring at times. Over all the book was alright.
Apr 19, 2009
Diane
rated it:
Better than I expected. The cover looked a bit iffy and the protagonist sounds smarmy at first but once you get into the story you realize that she is only sixteen years old and newly married to an equally naive young man who has gone to fight for the Union in the American Civil War leaving his young bride with her cantankerous mother-in-law to run the family farm. The characterization is quite good and quite insightful as to the role of women in that time and place. A good read.
