Quilt of Dreams [Hardcover]

Mindy Dwyer (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

"Quilt of Dreams" celebrates the special relationship of grandmothers, mothers, and daughters and their labors of love that result in spectacular quilts.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Dwyer's (Coyote in Love) softly shaded watercolors exude cheeriness and warmth, and her patterns create a coziness befitting her subject, but the artwork is ultimately overwhelmed by the text. As the first snow falls, Katy resumes her goal to finish the quilt Gram had started for her before she died. Katy enlists the aid of her mother, who promises to give her Gram's special scissors when she has mastered her stitches. As Katy struggles with her needle and thread, she and her mother wonder about the significance of the pattern, which is revealed through Katy's dream of migrating cranes. The girl then recognizes the repeating pattern of triangles as cranes, special to Katy from her early childhood dreams, harbingers of spring for the far north and, for Gram (whose scissors are shaped like a crane), a symbol of tradition. Unfortunately, the author hammers the message a bit ("Just as these stitches hold the quilt together, our sewing connects us, you and Gram and me"), and crams into the text a surfeit of homilies ("Gram used to say that quilts are made out of time"; "[Katy] closed her eyes and made a wish that her memories would never disappear like these beautiful snowflakes"). Ages 7-up. (Oct..-- closed her eyes and made a wish that her memories would never disappear like these beautiful snowflakes"). Ages 7-up. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 4-After her grandmother's death, Katy and her mother find a stack of quilt patches and a note that reads "Kate's quilt." Gram had completed only one piece and it is up to Katy and her mother to finish it. The pattern, Birds in the Air, is revealed to the child in a dream in which she is flying with cranes, her grandmother's favorite birds. She learns about different designs as she and her mother work on the quilt throughout a long Alaska winter. After it is finished, Katy's mother gives her Gram's crane-shaped sewing scissors. When she sleeps beneath the quilt for the first time, the child once again dreams of flying with cranes and sees her grandmother waving from her cabin window. Dwyer's warm, homey illustrations capture the coziness of a snug winter cabin. Mother and daughter sip steaming tea and sew. A black cat appears in every illustration. Despite the alluring art, the slow pace makes for an awkward read-aloud. The wordy text is slightly pedantic and the admirable message of family, home, and tradition is delivered with a heavy hand. This book will appeal to quilters; most children will be better served by Valerie Flournoy's The Patchwork Quilt (Dial, 1985). An author's note about quilting includes information about several different patterns.
Shawn Brommer, Southern Tier Library System, Painted Post, NY
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Alaska Northwest Books (October 5, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0882405225
• ISBN-13: 978-0882405223
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 10.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,528,788 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quilt of Dreams, October 7, 2000

By 

Thelma Ritchie (Mercer Island, Washington) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Quilt of Dreams (Hardcover)

Mindy Dwyer's Quilt of Dreams is a wonderful story which introduces the concept of tradition through an artistic presentation of historic quilt patterns. The story is beautifully written and fun to read, and it is enhanced by Dwyer's beautiful artwork. Children will be enthralled with the creative presentation of quilt patterns, and anyone with an interest in quilts will find the book enjoyable. Quilt of Dreams would be an enriching read aloud for classes of elementary students during a study of colonial times.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A gentle story of love, March 12, 2001

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Quilt of Dreams (Hardcover)

After Grandma dies, Katie is flooded with memories whenever she uses one of her quilts. Each one holds a special story, but the mystery happens when Katie finds a quilt just for her - which is uncompleted. A gentle story of love.