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13th out of 16 books
—
7 voters
The Union Quilters: An Elm Creek Quilts Novel (Elm Creek Quilts #17)
The New York Times bestselling author of the Elm Creek Quilts series joins the Dutton list with a Civil War-era tale of love and sacrifice behind Union lines.
With The Union Quilters, Chiaverini delivers a powerful story of a remarkable group of women coping with changing roles and the extraordinary experiences of the Civil War.
In 1862 Water's Ford, Pennsylvania, aboliti...more
With The Union Quilters, Chiaverini delivers a powerful story of a remarkable group of women coping with changing roles and the extraordinary experiences of the Civil War.
In 1862 Water's Ford, Pennsylvania, aboliti...more
Hardcover, 352 pages
Published
February 22nd 2011
by Dutton Adult
(first published January 1st 2011)
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Right away The Union Quilters struck me as more of a stand alone historical fiction novel then an Elm Creek Quilts novel. Since I love historical fiction this is just fine (and lovely, and perfect) by me! If anything I would compare this book to The Sugar Camp Quilt by Chiaverini (hands down my favourite book in the series) as it wasn’t quite as light as the other Elm Creek Quilts books. The actual quilting theme was secondary in this novel and I found that the story really was focused upon the...more
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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I've been on a Civil War kick and thought this would fit right in. The story followed a few members of quilting circle and their husbands and family during the Civil War. This unique group of women felt empowered to help the men of their down when the joined up by sewing quilts, knitting socks, and participating in fundraisers. Eventually, their endeavors led them to create a hall that they were able to maintain in their own name instead of it being overtaken by the all male town council. One of...more
In this book The Union Quilters by Jennifer Chiaverini, the author gives a perspective of the Civil War from the perspective of a group of women and their menfolk, all residents of the small community of Water's Ford, Pennsylvania. Although the accounts of experiences in battles and imprisonment are interesting, I found the author's depiction of hte individual experiences fascinating. She describes through the experiences of a black man and his family the obstacles and prejudices that freeborn b...more
Feb 15, 2012
M
added it
Handicrafts are great. Sadly they are becoming lost arts and people move to things like digital design. But I am one of the people keeping them alive by practicing them. Another way that they are being kept alive is by the serge of popular novels that center around knitting clubs and quilters. We've all spotted them in book stores and at libraries and I've been reading a few that have been catching my eye. Most of them are light and fluffy, like Harlequin but if you trade sex for needlework. And...more
Excellent. In this volume of the Elm Creek Quilts series you learn more about Sylvia's family in the Civil War years. I am not a "war buff" but reading about the war by attaching it to characters that you know and (for me) care about made this a very interesting read. I will admit that I shed several tears toward the end of the book, but won't give away the story for those that haven't read it.
I read this out of sequence, after reading The Wedding Quilt: An Elm Creek Quilts Novel. As it turned o...more
I read this out of sequence, after reading The Wedding Quilt: An Elm Creek Quilts Novel. As it turned o...more
I'm sorry but this story is just not that interesting. I thought I would enjoy it because I am a quilter. But it seems more geared to a civil war history buff. There were so many dates mentioned and news type information rather than story line.
I had to read the first chapter twice to get all the characters straight in my head. There were more than a dozen adult characters mentioned in the first chapter and then the children. It was just too much.
I also felt that the character, Gerda is unlike...more
I had to read the first chapter twice to get all the characters straight in my head. There were more than a dozen adult characters mentioned in the first chapter and then the children. It was just too much.
I also felt that the character, Gerda is unlike...more
May 04, 2011
Joanna
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Lovers of historical fiction particularly the Civil War era
This is definitely one of the better Elm Creek Quilters books although totally set in the past with no mention of Sylvia, Sarah and the other present day quilters.
I have read some of the other reviewers who thought that the descriptions of the battles, conditions in the field hospitals and other aspects of the war were too harshly portrayed. Not at all. Compared to what it probably really was like this was portrayed as a cake walk. Abraham Lincoln remarks, "If there is a place worse than hell,...more
I have read some of the other reviewers who thought that the descriptions of the battles, conditions in the field hospitals and other aspects of the war were too harshly portrayed. Not at all. Compared to what it probably really was like this was portrayed as a cake walk. Abraham Lincoln remarks, "If there is a place worse than hell,...more
Jennifer Chiaverini is definitely moving onto new ground - exploring different characters - Sylvia Compton's progenitors, back at the time of the Civil War. I like character studies and usually find myself very drawn to her characters. However, this book spends way too much time discussing military strategy and gives you plenty of potent images of the horror of war. And for the first time ever in Chiaverini's books, I didn't find her characters very likable. They were certainly flawed in pretty...more
This book is labled as part of the Elm Creek Quilt series, but can be read as a stand alone.
The story takes place during the Civil War. The lives of the soliders during the battles, the wives who are home running the farms and raising money to help out the 49th Pennsylvania Volunteers and the 6th United States Colored Troop. The woman, known as the Union Quilters, build a community center in town, make quilts and knit articles for the men they love and other soliders. How the women handle the ne...more
The story takes place during the Civil War. The lives of the soliders during the battles, the wives who are home running the farms and raising money to help out the 49th Pennsylvania Volunteers and the 6th United States Colored Troop. The woman, known as the Union Quilters, build a community center in town, make quilts and knit articles for the men they love and other soliders. How the women handle the ne...more
1.) Reasons you chose this book
I've been reading this series from the very beginning. My mother-in-law is a gifted quilter and I've always admired her work and often dreamed of being a quilter myself. Knowing that there is no way I can create these works of art, I opted to live out my dreams by reading this series about women and quilting.
2.) Reasons you liked or disliked this book
* I really enjoy books that take place during the Civil War time period. I've always been fascinated by this part o...more
I've been reading this series from the very beginning. My mother-in-law is a gifted quilter and I've always admired her work and often dreamed of being a quilter myself. Knowing that there is no way I can create these works of art, I opted to live out my dreams by reading this series about women and quilting.
2.) Reasons you liked or disliked this book
* I really enjoy books that take place during the Civil War time period. I've always been fascinated by this part o...more
Jul 29, 2011
Sandybear76
added it
I love this series. This latest story of the ladies of Water's Ford PA starts as they are sending their husbands, sons, and friends off to war in fine style with an all day ceremony. While the men are off to war, the women take care of the farms, businesses, gardens and kids and still get together to make quilts for their men's regiment. As they make the quilts, they read their letters aloud so everyone hears the news of the regiment. They want to raise more money to make more quilts and to buy...more
I won this book from Goodreads and was excited to read it as I have enjoyed Jennifer Chiaverini's Elm Creek Quilt series. This time, however, I have to say the author missed the mark. The Civil War is very popular right now as it is 150 years since it began. I'm sure we'll see a lot of books with a Civil War theme in the next few years. While Chiaverini brings in characters we have met in other books in the series, the story does not hold together as well as others she has written. It felt like...more
In 1862 Water’s Ford, Pennsylvania is a busy place. Most of the men are off to war to fight for the Union. The woman are rallying to support the cause. They are holding fundraisers, sending bandages, food and supplies. They are using their needles to make quilts to send to hospitals. The also create a very special quilt that will reach out well beyond Water’s Ford.
Gerda Bergstrom takes on Southern sympathizers in the pages of the local newspaper. Anneke Bergstrom deals with her husband pacifist...more
Gerda Bergstrom takes on Southern sympathizers in the pages of the local newspaper. Anneke Bergstrom deals with her husband pacifist...more
Part of the Elm Creek quilt series this book focused on the Civil War. It was a little deeper and historical than the other book I read (The Christmas Quilt) in that it dealt with the war from both the women and men’s perspective, slavery and the Underground Railroad and the challenges of living during the 1860’s.
Sometimes the book was intense and not necessarily fun to read when discussing the war and hardships endured. There was an interesting character Hans who I really didn’t understand his...more
Sometimes the book was intense and not necessarily fun to read when discussing the war and hardships endured. There was an interesting character Hans who I really didn’t understand his...more
Sat down yesterday to read the last 1/4 of the book even though my to-do list wasn't complete. I used an early due date back at the library as my excuse.
Chiaverini is getting better at writing historical novels. I felt this one was her best historical novel in the series, but I still prefer the ones set in the present. Hopefully the next book will be set in the present time period!
The story didn't contain much quilting, which is why I read this series; I want to be inspired to quilt more, to tr...more
Chiaverini is getting better at writing historical novels. I felt this one was her best historical novel in the series, but I still prefer the ones set in the present. Hopefully the next book will be set in the present time period!
The story didn't contain much quilting, which is why I read this series; I want to be inspired to quilt more, to tr...more
As a quilter I have enjoyed Jennifer Chiaverini's Elm Creek Quilters novels which revolve around a group of women who are drawn to each other because of their love of quilting and willingness to help others with quilting and with life’s challenges. The books are set in beautiful rural Pennsylvania and the original books sometimes refer to the history of the area. Along the way Jennifer Chiaverini spends more time writing about quilters in the past rather than the original group of women. The Uni...more
This story is set in the time of the Civil war in Pennsylvania. At first the men joined of their own free will, the one that was excluded was a black free man - Able and we follow the stories of the men as they do or do not go to battle. One man is a conscientious objector and is ostrasized by the community and for a while estranged from his wife and children because of it. It brings in all the different aspects of war and the question of war.
In the meantime, the women are left behind trying to...more
In the meantime, the women are left behind trying to...more
Reading about the Civil War is always interesting. I enjoyed the relationships between the ladies of the quilting circle. But I wonder. Would the ladies during that time period welcome Constance, a black woman, as they did. Would they accept Gerda thinking she bore a child out of wedlock? The relationships between the men and women seemed a little overblown--either too idealistic or unrealistic. The support and comfort women the women received from other women was more believable. During the cor...more
I really liked parts of this story but some of the military parts seemed to drag. The one thing that annoyed me was the continual description of Jonathan's integrity. I did not find his treatment of his wife and Gerda honorable at all.
This is the first of the Elm Creek books I've ever read, and I wonder if it's an appropriate sample. I listened to this on CD and while there were parts I got caught up in, most of the book is summary, as though someone was telling me a story about a group of people. Too much "he had said..." or "they did such and so." I would have liked to have seen more detail about one family or a few people instead of just summaries of things that happened.
Also, the technique of reading letters and newspaper...more
Also, the technique of reading letters and newspaper...more
I've read a couple other Jennifer Chiaverini books - picked up this one because of the tie-in to the Civil War. Pretty predictable. Amazing that she could squeeze into the pages having her characters meet Lincoln, one of Mary Lincoln's siblings and Elizabeth Van Lew of Richmond. She not only covers the creation of a quilt to raise funds for this little Pennsylvania valley's men but she also covers the underground railroad (yes, some of the characters were major players), the issue of the black m...more
This is the latest in this series that I've been following for a long time. It's set in the past, Civil War times, and deals with how the ancestors of the present-day Elm Creek Quilters supported each other and their loved ones fighting in the war. Chiaverini has clearly done a LOT of research -- my husband is a big Civil War buff and could confirm little details like where Lincoln had lunch on the day of the Gettysburg address, etc. -- and I have suggested to him that he might even like to read...more
Want to read a story about the Civil War from a woman's point of view. Read this book. It is truely an historical tale worth reading. These women from Pennsylvania whose men are marching off to war rally to support them. Reading about what's really going on from the letters they receive make them even more involved. The story also makes the reader see the treatment of slaves and free blacks from a very different prespective. Blacks may be free but are they treated as equals. Women are also shown...more
Another find on the "New Books" shelf, just in time for the sesquicentennial of the Civil War. I've found some of Chiverini's books to be a bit light and repetitive, but I thought this account of the Civil War years contained some new approaches to old information. I liked the exchanges of letters between the women at home and the men on the front lines. She only included a few battle scenes, and these were described by observers, rather than participants, so they weren't tedious blow-by-blow ac...more
Another terrific book in the Elm Creek Quilts series. The Civil War is described in haunting detail, placing the Elm Creek characters in well-researched historical settings of the war, and much of it written from the women-at-home point of view. Some of it was hard to read, as the grim scenes of Gettysburg and Libby prison played out. The only problem with this series is that it has gone on so long, and includes such a span of time and so many characters, that I kept feeling like I had forgotten...more
Hmmm....
On the one hand, I can now say I've read one of the quilt books, and it wasn't bad. On the other hand, I have no interest in reading another one. It's very chick-lit, only a little more heavyweight than average. Since this one takes place around the Civil War, there's plenty of Major Change and Drama in the telling, and I did come to really like Dorothea, Constance, and Gerda, to name a couple of sympathetic characters. However, some of the other women were simply annoying start to finis...more
On the one hand, I can now say I've read one of the quilt books, and it wasn't bad. On the other hand, I have no interest in reading another one. It's very chick-lit, only a little more heavyweight than average. Since this one takes place around the Civil War, there's plenty of Major Change and Drama in the telling, and I did come to really like Dorothea, Constance, and Gerda, to name a couple of sympathetic characters. However, some of the other women were simply annoying start to finis...more
We've all seen photos from the Civil War era, women's faces stern and serious. This book brought them to life. It was thought provoking to read about the beginning of women's independence while men were at war. More than a few characters' stories are included, and it was not easy to tell which one was the focus of the book. It's obviously part of a series; incomplete if you haven't read the previous ones recently, and leaving a lot more to be said that will no doubt be in the next book. Tension...more
I abandoned this book approximately 1/3 in - I've read plenty of Jennifer Chiaverini's books and love historical fiction, so not getting along with this one was a real surprise to me.
I did work out why though. The third person narrative just plodded along, with very little dialogue or hints at inner monologue. The lack of engagement with the characters and the events happening to them, combined with the pacing, made this a really boring read.
I'm really hoping this isn't something that is in all...more
I did work out why though. The third person narrative just plodded along, with very little dialogue or hints at inner monologue. The lack of engagement with the characters and the events happening to them, combined with the pacing, made this a really boring read.
I'm really hoping this isn't something that is in all...more
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Jennifer Chiaverini is the author of ten Elm Creek Quilts novels and An Elm Creek Quilts Sampler and An Elm Creek Quilts Album, as well as Elm Creek Quilts and Return to Elm Creek, two collections of quilt projects inspired by the series, and is the designer of the Elm Creek Quilts fabric lines from Red Rooster fabrics. She lives with her husband and two sons in Madison, Wisconsin.
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Jul 21, 2012 05:06pm
Jul 21, 2012 08:26pm