The+Patchwork+Quilt

Samantha Stanley The Patchwork Quilt

by Valerie Flournoy

Bibliographic Data Title: The Patchwork Quilt Author: Valerie Flournoy Illustrator: Jerry Pinkey Age Level: 5-9 Years IBSN: 9780803700970 Publisher: Penguin Group Inc. Pages: 32 Pages Publication Date: 3/28/85 Awards: Coretta Scott King Award for Illustrator

Summary: The picture book The Patchwork Quilt is about the relationship between Tanya and her grandmother. Tanya’s grandmother begins making a quilt from pieces of worn out clothes that have belonged to different people in their family. Tanya and her grandmother are able to spend a lot of time while working on this quilt. Tanya’s grandmother becomes ill and Tanya as a result continues to work on the quilt by herself. When the grandmother gets better, she helps Tanya finish the quilt and then gives it to Tanya as a gift.

Book Review: This book is warmhearted and written beautifully. The author does a great job describing Tanya and her grandmother’s determination to complete this quilt. The writer is able to show how traditions are passed down from generation to generation. The illustrations throughout the book make the story very realistic. They were full of color and expression enhancing the book even more. This book shows how important family values are. This book would be great to teach to young children. It could even be used in a lesson and the children could make their own quilts.

Author Bio: Valerie Flournoy was born in 1952 in Camden, New Jersey. She received a teacher’s certification in social studies from Hobart and William Smith College. When she started writing for children, she also worked for a publishing company. She doesn’t writer anymore, though she travels the country visiting schools. Literary Analysis: A great literary tool that can be used throughout this book is inferencing. Throughout this book, children and people reading this book can use clues in the book including illustrations and dialogue to help draw conclusions about the story. They can draw conclusions about the characters and their feelings. Something that can be inferenced is the attitude Tanya has toward making the quilt shows how much it means to her. Additional Links: The Patchwork Quilt read aloud @http://vimeo.com/6275389