Customer Reviews

The Quilter's Homecoming (Elm Creek Quilts Series, Book 10)

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Once again we follow Chiaverini's lead as her Elm Creek series temporarily leaves central Pennsylvania. But don't despair! This installment provides historical background so that we can piece together (!) the ancestry of some of our favorite characters.

Half of the two-part plot focuses on Elizabeth, Sylvia's cousin, as she accompanies her new husband to California in 1925. Together the newlyweds plan to get into the ranching business in the verdant Arboles Valley, north of Los Angeles. Things don't quite work out as planned, but Elizabeth and Henry Nelson are strong enough to make the most of their situation. Will they really ride out their difficulties in California? Or will Henry send Elizabeth back to Pennsylvania and the Bergstrom family?

The other half of the story belongs to Isabel Rodriguez, whom we first join in 1875. Much of the land of the Arboles Valley, including its signature apricot orchards, belonged to Isabel's family for generations. But drought and development prey on their ancestral lands, and eventually a Norwegian family named Jorgensen takes over the property. That day marks the beginning of seemingly bad times for the Rodriguezes, and then the Diazes, and for Isabel and her family in particular. When her daughter Rosa is courted by two men -- one of them, Lars Jorgensen -- the right choice to make seems clear. But is it? And once made, how can a woman at the turn of the last century deal with an abusive relationship?

This tale-told-in-tandem is simply mesmerizing, as we switch scenes from Elizabeth to Isabel / Rosa, slightly off-kilter because of the time discrepancy. But of course we know full well that the threads will come together at some point. The quilts in these women's lives provide part of the connection. And in this effort, we are NOT disappointed! I can honestly say that this book offers the most satisfying conclusion of any book I have read in recent years. Chiaverini is an expert storyteller who knows exactly how much to reveal to her readers. A must-read, even if you haven't opened the other books in the series.

In a world where anyone who wants a quilt can go to a department store and for less than $100.00 walk away with a "handmade"item, a book set in an era where such an heirloom as a quilt sewn by hand with the recipient in mind may seem out of place. Unless, of course, you consider the hundreds of thousands of women all over the world who welcome more women (and men) to their ranks each year to do exactly that. Yes, the mechanics have changed from needle, thread and scissors to sewing machines, long arm quilting machines and rotary cutters, but the connecting threads are still the same. Making a quilt is a labor of love and each choice of fabric and pattern reflect the quilt maker and her hopes and dreams for the recipient.

"The Quilter's Homecoming" is the story of Sylvia Compson's dear elder cousin Elizabeth who is a young bride adventurously setting off from Pennsylvania to California with her new husband to find her fortune. Taking with her the legacy of quilting, hard work, and common sense, she represents well the Bergstrom women who showed her by example what it took to make a marriage work.

Readers looking for more of the characters in "Circle of Quilters" had best not look to "The Quilter's Homecoming" to satisfy their appetites. Readers who enjoyed "The Runaway Quilt" and "The Sugar Camp Quilt" are sure to relish yet another story set in the past, this time in the dawning of the twentieth century.

Jennifer Chiaverini's stories, to me, are like quilts. Each one is different but beautiful in a unique way. She doesn't write the same story again and again, simply changing the characters and settings; just like I don't make the same log cabin or nine patch quilt again and again simply changing the colors. Don't let me persuade you that the books are too different from each other that you wouldn't know they were penned by the same author though. "The Quilter's Homecoming" carries the same unmistakable message of hope, perseverance, and love as the stories we already know and love. Readers who are thirsty for a story about how letting go of enmity and pride can heal hearts and families will not be disappointed by this book. No quilter would be disappointed to receive this book, either!

Another of Chiaverini's quilting books -- it's always amazing to see how she will work quilting into the plot. Two stories here do eventually converge, though you begin by wondering why there are two stories being told. This one is about Elizabeth, Sylvia's beloved elder cousin who married, moved off to California, and never came back. It's a good read.

Moving to southern California to start their lives as newly weds on "Triumph Ranch," Elizabeth and Henry Nelson leave their idyllic homes in Pennsylvania and take a train to their new lives. It's the 1920s; things looked bright and Henry is excited about making his fortune raising cattle. Elizabeth, although saddened about leaving the only home she'd known since birth, dreams of bobbing her hair, shortening her skirts and possibly being discovered by a movie producer.

Upon arriving at the ranch site, the Nelson's find things aren't as they had envisioned. Disappointed, but not discouraged, they get to work and make the best of their situation.

Friends are to be made in southern California, and stories of these new friends to be told. As with the other Elm Creek Quilts novels, quilts and their histories are intertwined with new friends and play an important part in The Quilter's Homecoming.

Among Elizabeth's new friends is Rosa, the wife of John Barclay. Although the postmaster in Arboles Valley - the geographical location of several ranches - John avoids familiarity with his neighbors, and has a private side he refuses to reveal. Rosa leads a sad life due to the loss and illness of several of her children. Fortunately, two of her children thrive and bring some light into Rosa's life, but even these two children don't do the same for John.

The Quilter's Homecoming held my interest from beginning to end. There is just enough mystery to keep the reader turning pages, enough intrigue to keep the reader wanting to know what's going to happen next.

The characters are well written and I could emphasize and identify with them. Chiaverini gives enough information about the time and locations to allow readers to see images in their minds; the book is a quick read and elicits memories of our own lives and families. The heartache and happiness we all deal with are present in The Quilter's Homecoming.

Author Jennifer Chiaverini lives in Madison, Wisconsin with her family. A graduate of the University of Notre Dame, she is a former writing instructor. She has written seven volumes of the Elm Creek Quilts series and two volumes of quilt patterns. Multi talented, she has designed the Elm Creek Quilts fabric line, Red Rooster Fabrics.

After reading The Quilter's Homecoming, I wanted to know more about the series. Chiaverini seems to have hit upon an ingenious idea for a book series and I am left wanting more.

This book is about Sylvia's cousin, Elizabeth, who marries an heir to Three Bears Farm (neighbors to Elm Creek Manor) and moves to California. Henry announces that he has purchased a cattle ranch called Triumph Ranch in southern California, and he proposes to Elizabeth on the condition that she move with him to start a new life with land of their own. A parallel plot line traces the Diaz family's roots to a ranch in southern California years earlier. The two families' paths cross and much is learned about the history of the land and its inhabitants.

Both story lines, which take place in the late 1800s and early 1900s, are intriguing in their own right and link us back to Elm Creek Manor through quilting. The quilt patterns shown in the inside of the front and back covers of the book are taken from the book's plot and their meanings are explained well to the reader.

This is an enjoyable book providing some insight into the late 19th and early 20th centuries when times were more trying than they are today. It is a book about love (both lost and gained) and the ties that bind a family.

The newest addition to Jennifer Chiaverini's Elm Creek Quilts series is both heart warming and heart breaking. In the middle of the 1920es we follow the newly wed Elizabeth Nelson - older cousin of the series main character Sylvia - and her husband Henry to their new home in California. As the young couple struggle to make a life for them selves on different terms than they expected, we also follow the life and struggles of Rosa Diaz Barclay - a young woman native to the valley, with which Elizabeth's life becomes intertwined.

Unlike Ms. Chiaverini's earlier novels this one is more intense when it comes to stories of pain and suffer, forbidden love and family feuds; still she manages to tell them with a lot of warmth and feeling. As a reader be prepared to laugh and cry with her characters as their stories are portrayed on the pages.

Read it and enjoy it!

PS! To me as a Norwegian, I also found it fun to read about 19th century Norwegian immigrants; the Jorgensen family - who are to become the employers of the young Nelson couple.

This book traces the early married life of Sylvia's adored older cousin, Elizabeth. It tells of her courtship with Henry, their wedding, and long honeymoon trip to California where they hoped to take possession of Triumph Ranch, which Henry had purchased. Things do not go as expected and they soon become employees of the ranch's owners. Their story is interwoven with the story of the Rodriguez family, who originally owned the ranch. Family feuds, hidden loves, and hardships are all parts of this latest book in the Elm Creek Quilts series. Author Chiaverini weaves the stories of the two families together as deftly as the ladies who create the quilts in the book. This is a welcome addition to this series.

I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the books in this series and hope there will be more. They are interestingly written, contain non-offensive language, and are excellent studies of human personalities.

I am so excited to read this new novel in Ms. Chiaverini's series! Her books appeal to so many! Her writing style is wonderfully non-offensive, clean and honest...you just FEEL like everything is really true, (I want to go to Sylvia Compson's quilting retreat!) and that you are a part of the family! I'm waiting with "baited breath" to read about Elizabeth's journey. Great concept! Just a WONDERFUL READ for all!

Ms Chiaverini did it again!! This newest book is just as wonderful as the past books in this series have been! When I started reading it, I was a bit disappointed that it was only set in the past, but once I got into to reading that went away quickly! This is a 'don't want to put it down' book, highly recommended.