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Sarah Agnes Prine #2
Sarah's Quilt: A Novel of Sarah Agnes Prine and the Arizona Territories, 1906
Sarah's Quilt, the long-awaited sequel to These Is My Words, continues the dramatic story of Sarah Agnes Prine. Beloved by readers and book clubs from coast to coast, These Is My Words told the spellbinding story of an extraordinary pioneer woman and her struggle to make a home in the Arizona Territories. Now Sarah returns.In 1906, the badlands of Southern Arizona Territory is a desolate place where a three-year drought has changed the landscape for all time. When Sarah's well goes dry and months pass with barely a trace of rain, Sarah feels herself losing her hold upon the land. Desperate, Sarah's mother hires a water witch, a peculiar desert wanderer named Lazrus who claims to know where to find water. As he schemes and stalls, he develops an attraction to Sarah that turns into a frightening infatuation. And just when it seems that life couldn't get worse, Sarah learns that her brother and his family have been trapped in the Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906. She and her father-in-law cannot even imagine the devastation that awaits them as they embark on a rescue mission to the stricken city.Sarah is a pioneer of the truest spirit, courageous but gentle as she fights to save her family's home. But she never stops longing for the passion she once knew. Though her wealthy neighbor has asked her to wed, Sarah doesn't entirely trust him. And then Udell Hanna and his son come riding down the dusty road. . . .
428 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 21, 2005
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May 11, 2022
I was much afraid this book would not be able to live up to its predecessor, These is My Words. For one thing, I knew it would be missing one of its most dynamic characters and how could it have that same impact. It would be set in a later period as well, and that seemed to me to invite a less stirring tale. Ah, I have underestimated this terrific writer, for she wove this story and took me right back into Sarah’s world.
I love books like these that feel authentic to their times, that weave an adventure you would never want to live but enjoy participating in from afar. What a hard life our ancestors lead settling this country. It would have required a lot of courage, not to mention the perseverance to keep starting over disaster after disaster, loss after loss. I hardly came up for air while reading it and now I’m quite anxious to get to the third book in the series.
Another thank you to Lori for introducing me to this series of books. Great fun and totally memorable.
I love books like these that feel authentic to their times, that weave an adventure you would never want to live but enjoy participating in from afar. What a hard life our ancestors lead settling this country. It would have required a lot of courage, not to mention the perseverance to keep starting over disaster after disaster, loss after loss. I hardly came up for air while reading it and now I’m quite anxious to get to the third book in the series.
Another thank you to Lori for introducing me to this series of books. Great fun and totally memorable.
July 11, 2008
Well I'm just plumb tuckered out and fit to be tied after reading this book. Although I did enjoy seeing Sarah move on with her life, I think I would have rather left her memory the way it ended in These is My Words. This book is so far fetched and over the top with trials and heartaches. Made me exhausted reading it. Couldn't relate to it the same as the first book, and it didn't have as many tidbits of wisdom. It was interesting and she pulls you in just the same as the first book. It was good enough for me to finish it in two weeks, but I would probably recommend reading other books before this one.
October 12, 2013
This is the sequel to "These Is My Words", which is probably one of my very favorite books of all time. Sarah's Quilt picks up a few years after These Is My Words left off. It's about a summer full of trials and how they are endured and what is learned.
Sarah Agnes Prine Elliot is still living in the Arizona Territory. Her children are grown and she is discovering that she is having a hard time letting them go. There is a drought that's threatening to destroy her ranch. Her brother Harland and his family are living in San Francisco during a terrible earth quake, and she has to go and find them. A teenager claiming to be the son of her other brother Ernest find his way to the ranch and is determined to have his share of it. And during all this commotion Sarah finds herself missing Jack and the love she shared with him. It's made all the more confusing when her good friend and neighbor asks for her hand, but something seems a little fishy. And of course we can't forget the water witch...
I like this book because it still has Sarah's voice in it. You can very much picture this woman as someone who really lived and did the things talked about in this book. I think the author does a good job of capturing the feelings that all women have and expressing those feelings through a character who is lovable and very down to earth.
Before I read Sarah's Quilt, a lot of people told me that they liked it better than These Is My Words, but that just wasn't the case for me. I think the reason why though is because of the stage of life I am in right now, I find it easier to relate to the falling in love, getting married, and starting a family stage, than I do to the my kids are almost grown and I have a few grandkids stage of my life. So maybe in twenty years or so I will like Sarah's Quilt more than I like These Is My Words. They are both great books though and I would recommend them to anyone.
Sarah Agnes Prine Elliot is still living in the Arizona Territory. Her children are grown and she is discovering that she is having a hard time letting them go. There is a drought that's threatening to destroy her ranch. Her brother Harland and his family are living in San Francisco during a terrible earth quake, and she has to go and find them. A teenager claiming to be the son of her other brother Ernest find his way to the ranch and is determined to have his share of it. And during all this commotion Sarah finds herself missing Jack and the love she shared with him. It's made all the more confusing when her good friend and neighbor asks for her hand, but something seems a little fishy. And of course we can't forget the water witch...
I like this book because it still has Sarah's voice in it. You can very much picture this woman as someone who really lived and did the things talked about in this book. I think the author does a good job of capturing the feelings that all women have and expressing those feelings through a character who is lovable and very down to earth.
Before I read Sarah's Quilt, a lot of people told me that they liked it better than These Is My Words, but that just wasn't the case for me. I think the reason why though is because of the stage of life I am in right now, I find it easier to relate to the falling in love, getting married, and starting a family stage, than I do to the my kids are almost grown and I have a few grandkids stage of my life. So maybe in twenty years or so I will like Sarah's Quilt more than I like These Is My Words. They are both great books though and I would recommend them to anyone.
January 24, 2009
I didn't realize These Is My Words had two sequels until after I finished it. And when I found out, I was bummed. ME, the queen of sequels! I felt that These Is My Words was beautiful and heart-rending and deliciously complete in and of itself. To continue the story would dilute the one already told. So, I promised myself to ignore the sequels so I wouldn't risk ruining the closure I already had. But of course, I couldn't resist, and I'm happy I read on. Turner churns out the adventure and romance and desert living and it's totally delightful. Sarah's one of my favorite literary characters & I loved watching her develop through her adult years. Having said that: These Is My Words stands alone just fine.
August 13, 2008
I think this book was well written, but frankly, the story was just SO dang sad, it stressed me out reading it. Everyone says, oh she finds love, so I keep reading and thinking she will have a happy life, then when I'm positive it can't get any more depressing, it totally does! I truly hope one person did not go thru THAT many tragedies in real life. I don't know if I can stand to read the 3rd book in this series, it's too much of a downer - (I did just read the reviews of the 3rd book and everyone says it gets WAY better then this one). I LOVED the first one, and it was hard for me to read as well, tons of sadness in it too, but some happiness, too. This one got really happy for like 5 minutes at the end, and then, even then, another HORRIBLE thing happens in the middle of the 5 minutes of happiness. I do love the characters in these books.Maybe I will read the 3rd book in hopes of ending this saga on a more happy note. And at least the one character who gave me the bejibbees got killed off in the end - who was one of all time creepiest dude's evah, so that gives me hope to not have to read about him anymore, phew! :)
Pre Read thoughts of this book: Everyone says this is good. I am skeptical on reading it since my favorite character died in the first book, Captain Jack Elliot. But, Sarah is loaning it to me, so I will give it a try! :)
Pre Read thoughts of this book: Everyone says this is good. I am skeptical on reading it since my favorite character died in the first book, Captain Jack Elliot. But, Sarah is loaning it to me, so I will give it a try! :)
November 8, 2024
Sarah’s Quilt by Nancy E. Turner is a historical novel that continues on from the previous novel, These Is My Words. Written as a diary starting at the age of 17 by Sarah Agnes Prine, a young woman in 1906 Arizona Territories. The book is inspired by the author’s own family history. Sarah tells of the difficulty and hardships of frontier life. In this novel the book is focused on the difficulties of a drought and keeping the family homestead. The diary provides a glimpse into Sarah’s thoughts, fears, and hopes. The author’s research s is wonderful. Putting the diary into a book that flows smoothly and realistic of the times. She portrays the dangers of wildlife, bad men and Indians on a frontier. She vividly tells of pioneer life as if the reader is there, living the life. This is a wonderful engaging book.
March 11, 2009
This book might better have been titled "Sarah's Affliction". I really began to feel overwhelmed by all her hardships and couldn't figure out how she was ever going to come out on top. On top of everything that went wrong, I was still so sad about the loss of Jack in the first book--that was a total blow to me. (Turner did such a good job of making him endearing.) But, I did enjoy reading it and enjoyed Sarah's perspective on things. I will say, the woman sure is a hard worker! Just reading about all the work she and her family did made me feel really lazy for just sitting there reading!
January 7, 2010
I agree with many reviewers here on Goodreads that Sarah's Quilt isn't quite as good as These Is My Words, the first in the series. That said, this is still a spectacularly good book, one I devoured in a mere two days. There are some issues with this novel, most particularly that the diary format doesn't work in this book. The chapters are far too long and detailed to be entries from Sarah's diaries, and I believe Nancy Turner would have been better off writing this in the first person without the diary format. But it doesn't detract at all from the story itself, so it's an easy problem to overlook.
Many reviewers felt that this book was simply too sad and depressing to enjoy, saying that there was no way that so many bad things could happen to one person. Life a hundred years ago was hard, no two ways about it, and doubly so on the frontier. There was no medical care, and the desert is a hard place to make a living with all the deadly scorpions and rattlers around, and coyotes ready to take down your livestock. After three years of drought, everything would be as dry as kindling, and even a spark of lightning would cause an all-encompassing wildfire. Haven't we learned that from the years of wildfires in California, where folks have lost everything they owned?
Yes, many, many terrible and awful things happened to Sarah Prine Elliott. But what we should remember is that she hung on through it all, and still she stayed optimistic. She had doubts, and she had days where she wanted to throw in the towel, but she didn't. She just kept on trucking. We could all learn a valuable lesson from Sarah Prine Elliott when we despair over one small thing or another in our relatively cushy lives.
Many reviewers felt that this book was simply too sad and depressing to enjoy, saying that there was no way that so many bad things could happen to one person. Life a hundred years ago was hard, no two ways about it, and doubly so on the frontier. There was no medical care, and the desert is a hard place to make a living with all the deadly scorpions and rattlers around, and coyotes ready to take down your livestock. After three years of drought, everything would be as dry as kindling, and even a spark of lightning would cause an all-encompassing wildfire. Haven't we learned that from the years of wildfires in California, where folks have lost everything they owned?
Yes, many, many terrible and awful things happened to Sarah Prine Elliott. But what we should remember is that she hung on through it all, and still she stayed optimistic. She had doubts, and she had days where she wanted to throw in the towel, but she didn't. She just kept on trucking. We could all learn a valuable lesson from Sarah Prine Elliott when we despair over one small thing or another in our relatively cushy lives.
July 24, 2023
Reread summer 2023. I think this is the third time I’ve read the series. Love it as much as I did the first times through, except now I’m the same age as Sarah in the book. Crazy to think of how different my life is from hers, yet some things (concerns about family, marriage, children, your own parents) is the same no matter the year.
August 7, 2012
A sequel usually doesn't live up to the orginal and this novel only gets 3 stars maybe 3.5. I loved These is my Words but this continuation of Sarah's life was sad, depressing, and I believe, I would have rather ended her story with the first book. Sarah was a strong woman and I did enjoy the characters and how their thoughts and actions color their lives however without more uplifting stories the book didn't hold my interest, compel me to read, want me to experience her life. There are good books, great books and books that change your thinking. This is a just a decent book with a story to tell of a strong gritty woman homesteader.
April 28, 2010
2 stars feels so low, but when I think about how I liked this book my reaction is "It was okay" so I guess it fits. Maybe more like 2,75 stars.
This takes place a couple of years after the end of THESE IS MY WORDS. It was interesting to see what happens to Sarah, but it wasn't the same reading experience as TisMW. I read one review that said all of the tragedies that befell Sarah in this book were a little too over-the-top. I disagreed until the last couple of incidents when I sort of rolled my eyes and thought, "Well sure let's just add that to the list, too!"
There is a new character introduced that I really fell in love with and am excited to know more about this person in the next book, THE STAR GARDEN. I hear that TSG is better than this book and more comparable to TisMW so I'm interested to read it next.
This takes place a couple of years after the end of THESE IS MY WORDS. It was interesting to see what happens to Sarah, but it wasn't the same reading experience as TisMW. I read one review that said all of the tragedies that befell Sarah in this book were a little too over-the-top. I disagreed until the last couple of incidents when I sort of rolled my eyes and thought, "Well sure let's just add that to the list, too!"
There is a new character introduced that I really fell in love with and am excited to know more about this person in the next book, THE STAR GARDEN. I hear that TSG is better than this book and more comparable to TisMW so I'm interested to read it next.
February 7, 2024
This is the second book in the Trilogy. It was fantastic and continues in the year 1906 to follow Sarah Agnes Prine Elliott and her family, friends, neighbors, and foes.
The first book, "These Is My Words," is probably my favorite book of all time. This second book took only a short bit to get going but really picked up, and I loved it!
Sarah is filled with so much strength, persistence, determination, courage, compassion, understanding, and love.
Throughout the book, she runs into many difficulties and challenges to overcome. It seems like 1906 is a year of never-ending droughts, shortfalls, tragedies, and setbacks. As always, Sarah handles it all with her years of experience earned as a pioneer woman and her unending strength and perserverence to keep her land and her ranch. These books are a realistic view of how hard it was for the pioneers back in the 1880s-early 1900s as they traveled and settled in their new territories back in the early days. Sarah Prine Elliott was a bad ass. She had to be.
I love her personality. Even during hardship, she has wit and can bring humor in at just the right moment. She can always tell when someone is sad or hurting and needs someone positive to talk to them and is there for them, even if she is sad inside. She can also light a fire under someone's bum if they need to get moving now, and I love that about her, too! I love that her boys looked out for her while they were there. I liked that she met Udell Hanna. He is good for her.
I listened to this on audible, and Nancy Turner is such a phenomenal author. I love how she writes so that you get to know each of the characters so well. It helps you as the reader really get invested in the story and what happens to each of the people as things develop. The narrator, Valerie Leonard, was wonderful to listen to and voiced all the characters very well. (16hrs47min)
This was a great second book to the trilogy, and I'm looking forward to reading the last book, The Star Garden.
This Trilogy should be read in order.
*These Is My Words
*Sarah's Quilt
*The Star Garden
I loved Sarah's Quilt. 4.7 Stars, rounded up to 5. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The first book, "These Is My Words," is probably my favorite book of all time. This second book took only a short bit to get going but really picked up, and I loved it!
Sarah is filled with so much strength, persistence, determination, courage, compassion, understanding, and love.
Throughout the book, she runs into many difficulties and challenges to overcome. It seems like 1906 is a year of never-ending droughts, shortfalls, tragedies, and setbacks. As always, Sarah handles it all with her years of experience earned as a pioneer woman and her unending strength and perserverence to keep her land and her ranch. These books are a realistic view of how hard it was for the pioneers back in the 1880s-early 1900s as they traveled and settled in their new territories back in the early days. Sarah Prine Elliott was a bad ass. She had to be.
I love her personality. Even during hardship, she has wit and can bring humor in at just the right moment. She can always tell when someone is sad or hurting and needs someone positive to talk to them and is there for them, even if she is sad inside. She can also light a fire under someone's bum if they need to get moving now, and I love that about her, too! I love that her boys looked out for her while they were there. I liked that she met Udell Hanna. He is good for her.
I listened to this on audible, and Nancy Turner is such a phenomenal author. I love how she writes so that you get to know each of the characters so well. It helps you as the reader really get invested in the story and what happens to each of the people as things develop. The narrator, Valerie Leonard, was wonderful to listen to and voiced all the characters very well. (16hrs47min)
This was a great second book to the trilogy, and I'm looking forward to reading the last book, The Star Garden.
This Trilogy should be read in order.
*These Is My Words
*Sarah's Quilt
*The Star Garden
I loved Sarah's Quilt. 4.7 Stars, rounded up to 5. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
July 12, 2021
An intense year of hardships follow Sarah Agnes Prine in 1906 Tucson, AZ. We follow Sarah and her family through a drought, wildfire, tornado, poisoned water, estranged nephew, runaway niece, and a neighbor with designs on political dreams. How someone can stand so much affliction is a survival pioneer spirit that allows them to "just go on". The narrator Valerie Leonard is excellent. She brings to life with emotion so many male and female voices.
June 6, 2011
Today I finished the second book in Nancy E. Turner's trilogy, Sarah's Quilt about the life of Sarah Agnes Prine, mother and pioneer.
Like the first novel, These Is My Words, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am definitely looking forward to finishing the trilogy with Star Garden next.
My Thoughts:
Like the first novel, this book really did capture what life must have been like for the pioneers that made their way into the territories and carved a life for themselves. This part of Sarah's journey was filled with hardships - tornadoes, earthquakes, death, a crazy lunatic, a challenging nephew, among other things.
Nancy E. Turner just has a way with words, and reading her novels makes you feel like you are the characters and you can see everything unfolding in your mind without much effort. Her writing style is so impressive, it almost seems effortless reading it.
This novel had me sitting on the edge of my seat a number of times, but as always, Sarah's common sense and keen understanding of people and life keep her plugging right along. She is the kind of character we all envision our ancestors to be because she forges ahead despite any obstacle. She has a love of family that should be a model for ALL people.
I am very excited to start the last book in the series, and can't wait to find out how Sarah's story ends. It is already difficult knowing that I will only be experiencing her life for one more novel.
Favorite Passages:
"I can stand anything but standing still."
"I still wear my wedding band. Someday I'll take it off I reckon. A callus keeps it in place. Whether it is the one on my finger or the one on my heart, I couldn't say."
"One thing I know about living with Jack is that war, any war, stains a man deep, and nothing can get that stain out."
"Maybe we all have to go on fighting our wars to stay alive. I reckon my war will be over when the boys plant that marble stone over me and six feet of dirt."
"I used to think she was addled when she changed the subject; now I'm wondering if she's just clever."
"Three in the morning had never come my way without some blessing attached to it."
"Good neighbors were worth keeping. I should have done more."
"Yesterday, I just about met myself coming the other way I was so busy."
"Willie, a man is known by two things, the people he rides with and the value of his word."
"You know, your aunt Savannah says sand and sin are one and the same. Tolerate a little, and soon it'll become a lot."
"That's the trouble with lawyers. It's not like they shoe a horse or hammer you a single blessed nail; you have to pay them just for thinking."
"Most half-grown boys have got the size of a man, trying to act as grown as they look, and the heart of a five-year-old, all emotion and no sense until they hit at least twenty."
"Burying someone you know will set your mind down some distant trail, as the one you're really on is too painful to view."
"The best cure for sadness is doing something."
"I've come to believe that it's a good thing to stay on first-name terms with your Maker, in case you bump into Him unexpectedly some afternoon."
"I'm just about fed up with men right now...it's just trouble, always trying to figure out what one's got caught in his craw that he isn't telling."
"I always thought through raising them that I was leading my boys...truth was, I was just following them, holding up the lantern."
"His words were few, but they always held something good as a drink of cool water in them."
Like the first novel, These Is My Words, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am definitely looking forward to finishing the trilogy with Star Garden next.
My Thoughts:
Like the first novel, this book really did capture what life must have been like for the pioneers that made their way into the territories and carved a life for themselves. This part of Sarah's journey was filled with hardships - tornadoes, earthquakes, death, a crazy lunatic, a challenging nephew, among other things.
Nancy E. Turner just has a way with words, and reading her novels makes you feel like you are the characters and you can see everything unfolding in your mind without much effort. Her writing style is so impressive, it almost seems effortless reading it.
This novel had me sitting on the edge of my seat a number of times, but as always, Sarah's common sense and keen understanding of people and life keep her plugging right along. She is the kind of character we all envision our ancestors to be because she forges ahead despite any obstacle. She has a love of family that should be a model for ALL people.
I am very excited to start the last book in the series, and can't wait to find out how Sarah's story ends. It is already difficult knowing that I will only be experiencing her life for one more novel.
Favorite Passages:
"I can stand anything but standing still."
"I still wear my wedding band. Someday I'll take it off I reckon. A callus keeps it in place. Whether it is the one on my finger or the one on my heart, I couldn't say."
"One thing I know about living with Jack is that war, any war, stains a man deep, and nothing can get that stain out."
"Maybe we all have to go on fighting our wars to stay alive. I reckon my war will be over when the boys plant that marble stone over me and six feet of dirt."
"I used to think she was addled when she changed the subject; now I'm wondering if she's just clever."
"Three in the morning had never come my way without some blessing attached to it."
"Good neighbors were worth keeping. I should have done more."
"Yesterday, I just about met myself coming the other way I was so busy."
"Willie, a man is known by two things, the people he rides with and the value of his word."
"You know, your aunt Savannah says sand and sin are one and the same. Tolerate a little, and soon it'll become a lot."
"That's the trouble with lawyers. It's not like they shoe a horse or hammer you a single blessed nail; you have to pay them just for thinking."
"Most half-grown boys have got the size of a man, trying to act as grown as they look, and the heart of a five-year-old, all emotion and no sense until they hit at least twenty."
"Burying someone you know will set your mind down some distant trail, as the one you're really on is too painful to view."
"The best cure for sadness is doing something."
"I've come to believe that it's a good thing to stay on first-name terms with your Maker, in case you bump into Him unexpectedly some afternoon."
"I'm just about fed up with men right now...it's just trouble, always trying to figure out what one's got caught in his craw that he isn't telling."
"I always thought through raising them that I was leading my boys...truth was, I was just following them, holding up the lantern."
"His words were few, but they always held something good as a drink of cool water in them."
October 14, 2021
I really wanted to like this since These Is My Words was such a phenomenal book. But it was just too wordy - it could have been an action packed wild ride of one tragedy and intrigue after another, but instead it was a long travelogue of who slept where each night and what was prepared and served at every meal. Not to mention the constant descriptions of clouds that never result in any rain! Also there were no plot twists (other than the literal tornado that flattens Sarah's house just when you think things couldn't possibly get worse) that the reader couldn't see a mile off. It was obvious who was behind all Sarah's water and wildfire problems. And when did this strong straightforward woman become so unable to speak her mind that she would keep telling the neighbor she had NO interest in whatsoever that she would 'think on' his marriage proposal. That was so out of character that it was more unbelievable than the constant tragedies she encounters! I would highly recommend reading These Is My Words and giving this sequel a miss.
March 4, 2023
This is going to sound harsh, but--
No Jack. No point.
No Jack. No point.
March 10, 2009
MAJOR INEXCUSABLE INCONSISTENCIES! When the book doesn’t know how many children the main character had that died, or where they are buried; it destroys the illusion that any of this really happened. It makes you feel like the author doesn’t really care about Sarah.(See pg383 These is my words, then pg 14, 109 and 369 in Sarah’s Quilt) The fact is that when they remind you of the blunder at the beginning middle and end of the book it is very difficult to get past it. Also, there were other problems with the Sarah not seeming to be the same heroine we loved from the 1st book; particularly with how long she let some things with a neighbor go on.
Do you think Lazarus is what became of Blue Horse or General Lockwood from the 1st book) hiding behind the filth and hair? (I’d say more but don’t want spoilers).
Question: What about Chess and his ranch or cattle/money from it? Seems strange that was never mentioned since he was living with Sara throughout and we know from the previous book he had left a very successful ranch that didn’t need him there anymore to take care of itself.
Interesting to contrast from pg.370 of 1st book people asking Jack to run vs. Rudolpho in this book.
DIDN’T CARE FOR THE TITLE / TOO AWARE OF AUTHOR THROUGHOUT
I like the description of the quilts hung above the parlor ready to be dropped (pg 51) but really was too aware of the author trying to impose the quilt theme throughout. It seemed difficult to picture Sara as a quilter. The final commentary about the quilt of her life seemed particularly heavy handed. I know you want a grabber of an opening sentence, but it was weird jolt to start in the middle of a story after the privious book. I found the chapter divisions (like the page breaks in the 1st book) arbitrary and felt she should have stuck more with the original format or should have dropped the dates within each chapter.
Do you think Lazarus is what became of Blue Horse or General Lockwood from the 1st book) hiding behind the filth and hair? (I’d say more but don’t want spoilers).
Question: What about Chess and his ranch or cattle/money from it? Seems strange that was never mentioned since he was living with Sara throughout and we know from the previous book he had left a very successful ranch that didn’t need him there anymore to take care of itself.
Interesting to contrast from pg.370 of 1st book people asking Jack to run vs. Rudolpho in this book.
DIDN’T CARE FOR THE TITLE / TOO AWARE OF AUTHOR THROUGHOUT
I like the description of the quilts hung above the parlor ready to be dropped (pg 51) but really was too aware of the author trying to impose the quilt theme throughout. It seemed difficult to picture Sara as a quilter. The final commentary about the quilt of her life seemed particularly heavy handed. I know you want a grabber of an opening sentence, but it was weird jolt to start in the middle of a story after the privious book. I found the chapter divisions (like the page breaks in the 1st book) arbitrary and felt she should have stuck more with the original format or should have dropped the dates within each chapter.
January 14, 2012
Nancy E Turner's These Is My Words was such a wonderful book, spanning Sarah Prine's life, that it's hard to imagine there being another whole book about Sarah. And to imagine that this book could hold a candle to the first is even harder to imagine. But it does.
Sarah's Quilt actually takes place in one year, 1906. And I'd highly recommend this be treated as a sequel. The story loses too much if it's read without reading the first book first. One thing that struck me is the reviewers who thought this book was too sad. One reviewer even said it was over the top, not believing that much tragedy could happen to one family in one year. They miss the point. Ranch life in the early 1900s really was that difficult. People died. Children died. Animals died.
I generally shy away from books that are very sad. But I don't think of this book as sad. It's just real. I did get teary eyed near the end of the story, but I want to express that it was the beauty of life, the beauty of family and friends, love and loss, fear and relief that make this book so great.
(Mini These Is My Words spoiler...)
In the end of These Is My Words, Sarah loses the love of her life. It took the wind out of my sails reading that. But if you loved Sarah and her story, read this book. Sarah sums it up in this quote, "Putting ****** (removed to prevent a spoiler) in the ground suddenly made everything and everyone around me more precious, more urgent, more real." It's a very real, and beautiful story.
I can't wait to read the next book!
Sarah's Quilt actually takes place in one year, 1906. And I'd highly recommend this be treated as a sequel. The story loses too much if it's read without reading the first book first. One thing that struck me is the reviewers who thought this book was too sad. One reviewer even said it was over the top, not believing that much tragedy could happen to one family in one year. They miss the point. Ranch life in the early 1900s really was that difficult. People died. Children died. Animals died.
I generally shy away from books that are very sad. But I don't think of this book as sad. It's just real. I did get teary eyed near the end of the story, but I want to express that it was the beauty of life, the beauty of family and friends, love and loss, fear and relief that make this book so great.
(Mini These Is My Words spoiler...)
In the end of These Is My Words, Sarah loses the love of her life. It took the wind out of my sails reading that. But if you loved Sarah and her story, read this book. Sarah sums it up in this quote, "Putting ****** (removed to prevent a spoiler) in the ground suddenly made everything and everyone around me more precious, more urgent, more real." It's a very real, and beautiful story.
I can't wait to read the next book!
March 20, 2008
This is a sequel to These Is My Words, but it is written differently. Instead of several different happenings over a span of several years, this diary covers one very complicated year. All of the events are interrelated and focus on one issue. Although it still has dates on it like a diary, it no longer is written like a diary anymore. However, the events occuring are quite interesting and still grabs you despite the differences.
Life parallel: Sarah's life events pass so quickly during her youth, and then slow down considerably, and smaller experiences become much more profound to her in her middle ages. I feel like that is what my life is like (and I can assume yours, too). My teen years were so full and fast, and my life's experiences have slowed down significantly. Even though the years past faster now, the experiences are deeper and take up more time.
Life parallel: Sarah's life events pass so quickly during her youth, and then slow down considerably, and smaller experiences become much more profound to her in her middle ages. I feel like that is what my life is like (and I can assume yours, too). My teen years were so full and fast, and my life's experiences have slowed down significantly. Even though the years past faster now, the experiences are deeper and take up more time.
June 14, 2018
It’s just not possible to give this continuing story of Sarah Prine less than 5 ⭐️’s. The story of the author’s great grandmother continues with a seemingly insurmountable amount of trials and hardships beginning with a drought that has lasted for several years. The time frame of the 400 page saga is only 7 months. Sarah puts high importance on education and making sure her children and nieces and nephews go to college. She is a no nonsense woman who believes in keeping her word and helping anyone who is in need, including animals. I wish people today lived their lives with the same amount of dedication to others and will toward honesty and truth as folks did then.
This novel is full of crazy characters too, one’s you just want to swat, including Lazrus and Willie. I just love this story and can’t wait to read The Star Garden.
This novel is full of crazy characters too, one’s you just want to swat, including Lazrus and Willie. I just love this story and can’t wait to read The Star Garden.
March 19, 2009
I loved These Is My Words, but this book left me disappointed and confused. I felt like Sarah was a different person in this book. All of Sarah's clever wit and charm, that made her so lovable and appealing in the 1st novel, was completely lost in this sequel. Also, just as a side note, how many kids did she have? Seems Nancy couldn't make up her mind.
September 3, 2022
The audible reader's voice sounded like Sissy Spacek and in my mind, Sarah looked like her too! I read abit and listened as well to this 2nd of Nancy E. Turner's, Sarah Agnes Prine trilogy. I am quite impressed with this author as she draws her readers back into a time using vivid sensory description. Pioneering the American West was not survived by the faint of heart. On enduring hard times, this brave heroine expresses her philosophy of life...
"Living is getting knocked down time and again, then standing up time and again, and once more. It's easy to act honorable when things are coming along and all your pastures are green. Plenty difficult when the ground is dried and burned and people have connived to take even that from you. I'll sell this place, or I'll lose it. I'll go on. People who don't have hard times aren't living."
I read and reread Sarah's stunning reflective quote on parenting. She nails the role of a good parent....
“I thought I was leading them, but the truth was, I was just following them, holding up a lantern.”
And on death...
“One thing I'd learned from all the burying I'd attended was that sometimes it's hard to pay attention. Burying someone you know will set your mind down some distant trail, as the one you're really on is too painful to view."
This is a well-told, gripping tale for the lover of historical fiction.
"Living is getting knocked down time and again, then standing up time and again, and once more. It's easy to act honorable when things are coming along and all your pastures are green. Plenty difficult when the ground is dried and burned and people have connived to take even that from you. I'll sell this place, or I'll lose it. I'll go on. People who don't have hard times aren't living."
I read and reread Sarah's stunning reflective quote on parenting. She nails the role of a good parent....
“I thought I was leading them, but the truth was, I was just following them, holding up a lantern.”
And on death...
“One thing I'd learned from all the burying I'd attended was that sometimes it's hard to pay attention. Burying someone you know will set your mind down some distant trail, as the one you're really on is too painful to view."
This is a well-told, gripping tale for the lover of historical fiction.
February 25, 2025
I was so nervous to read this. This book follows after my most favorite book, These is My Words. The first book left big shoes to fill and after the events in the first book, I couldn’t see how I could enjoy a second one. But I was wrong. While the first is still my favorite, I enjoyed this read so much! It stays true to the writing and story and characters in the first and I just love it so much. These books are historical fiction, based off the Authors great grand mother’s journals. The second book I think she faces just as much hardship, but it’s not as sad as the first. I think a big theme of these books is knowing the value of what/who you have in your life/what makes a rich life, and knowing you can survive far more than you think you can. I simply was not built to survive the lives people lived back in the day though lol. The crap they went through?? The Wild, Wild West truly earned its name, and reading the stories of things that happened during the time is so shocking. I’m excited to read the last book! The best part is these are books that can and will be rereading for sure.
August 18, 2022
I did it. I finally finished this book. I’ve started and restarted it so many times over the years I’ve lost count. But truthfully, it just never grabbed me and kept my interest like the first one did, even in the end. I know everyone says the third book is just like the first, but frankly I’m plum tuckered out after this one and don’t think I can go on any further.
December 8, 2024
“A clock only moves one way”
I love this Character Sarah Prine. And I love reading her journal. Wow the times were hard in Arizona in the early 1900’s and if you were Sarah they just seem to always get worse. I love her perspective and her attitude and how she just can’t be stopped. She is a tough, stubborn, wonderful, and forgiving woman. I learn so much from her, and reading about her empowers me!
I love this Character Sarah Prine. And I love reading her journal. Wow the times were hard in Arizona in the early 1900’s and if you were Sarah they just seem to always get worse. I love her perspective and her attitude and how she just can’t be stopped. She is a tough, stubborn, wonderful, and forgiving woman. I learn so much from her, and reading about her empowers me!
January 29, 2017
Almost a 3 and half star book for me. Not as good as These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901 though I still enjoyed it. There is a huge lull in the middle of the book. The beginning and ending was better for me while the mid section was a bit boring.
March 15, 2020
Not as gripping or moving as its predecessor, but that's the nature of sequels. Still terribly hard to put down, and made me want to read "These Is My Words" all over again!
June 28, 2020
Another favorite! A real page turner. Sarah Prine is one mighty woman!
September 17, 2023
I read the first book in this trilogy in 2022 and have wanted to go with the life of Sarah Prine, so I finally got to book 2. Great historical fiction presented in a diary form from the voice of Sarah, the main character.
September 10, 2019
Just as fascinating as the first of the trilogy. All the trouble got a little heavy after a while, but it all cleared up in the end.
Her characters are very well done, but it’s the land, always the land.
Her characters are very well done, but it’s the land, always the land.
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