Bess's Log Cabin Quilt [Hardcover]

D. Anne Love (Author), Ronald Himler (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1995 | Age Level: 9 and up

With her father away and her mother ill with fever, ten-year-old Bess works hard on a log cabin quilt to save the family farm.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bess Morgan's father was due home weeks ago from a job guiding settlers along the perilous Oregon Trail, and Bess and her mother are growing worried. Then Bess's mother falls ill with "swamp fever" and, to top it all off, they must scrape up a hundred dollars to pay the money lender or he'll seize the Morgans' farm-if the Indians don't get it first. The 10-year-old's only hope is to win a quilting contest in a local fair. The prize? A hundred dollars. Bess's fingers "fly across the fabric" even though she's just learned to quilt; the finished work isn't "as fancy as some, but the pattern was perfectly straight." The ending will surprise no one-this first novel, with its cliches and melodramas, is the bargain-basement version of a Little House on the Prairie TV episode. Ages 7-11.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-4?Bess Morgan, 10, and her mother are alone on their farm in the Oregon Territory while her father travels with a wagon train. When Mrs. Morgan becomes ill and the family is threatened with eviction by a frontier loan shark, Bess decides to enter her first quilt in a contest to win enough money to pay the debt. Would that we all had children like brave Bess! She bakes biscuits for breakfast, takes care of her mother and the farm, then comes in and works on her quilt until her fingers are pricked and her eyes are burning. Wait, there's more. When Indians break into the cabin and Mrs. Morgan faints, Bess fires Papa's gun and scares them away. Pioneers survived by helping one another, and adults do come to the Morgans' aid. Many plot elements, however, seem unrealistic. At the beginning of the book, Mrs. Morgan is teaching young Bess how to make a quilt. The child is impatient and repeatedly makes mistakes. After the bill collector's threatening visit, she works hard and finishes the quilt in three weeks. The front-runner in the competition withdraws when she realizes Bess's situation, but cautions the child that she is up against many accomplished and experienced quilters. Bess does not win?she ties for second?but it still seems unlikely. When Bess gets home with her prize money (the exact amount needed to erase the debt), Papa has returned, and has already paid it off. Too facile, too saccharine, too much.?Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 123 pages
• Publisher: Holiday House; 1st edition (April 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823411788
• ISBN-13: 978-0823411788
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,109,065 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic! Don't miss this new author!, November 9, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Bess's Log Cabin Quilt (Hardcover)

This is a fantastic book. I bought copies for all my nieces