The Moon Quilt - Hardcover

Warner, Sunny

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0618055835 ISBN 13: 9780618055838

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers, 2001

Synopsis

It is a day in June, and the old woman is sitting on her porch with her cat. She has fallen asleep and is dreaming of her man, who was lost at sea. When she wakes up, the old woman is smiling. She goes to the quilt she is making and cuts new pieces of cloth. She is sewing her dream into the design.
As the season turns and the moon waxes and wanes, the quilt grows beneath the old woman’s needle, recording life as it flows around her. When at last the quilt is complete, she sleeps and finally joins her man in his boat sailing past the moon.

About this title

About the Author

Author-artist Sunny Warner uses bits of fabric in her illustrations to create a quilted effect for this touching tale. A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, she has written and illustrated several children's books. Ms. Warner lives in Tucson, Arizona

From Publishers Weekly

An elderly woman stitches the fabric of her life--past and present--into a quilt in Warner's (The Magic Sewing Machine) reflective, sophisticated story. As the moon waxes and wanes, the woman (whose eyes are closed only when her beloved cat's eyes are open, and vice versa) dreams "of her old man, who was lost at sea." She envisions him on his fishing boat, sailing through the sky on a rainbow, growing younger as he approaches the moon. After "sewing her dream into the design" of her quilt, the woman plants pumpkin seeds in anticipation of Halloween; a visit from trick-or-treaters, her own portrait and her pet's make it into her quilt as well. Elements of each spread further the quilting metaphor: fabric prints define the hills, shrubs and sidewalks around the woman's house, and perceptive children will revel in identifying objects and patterns seen on previous pages in the cleverly composed quilt (lilies from her garden, swatches of her kitchen curtains). In November, "glad to rest," the woman and feline sit outdoors beneath the moon and for the first time both of them close their eyes. A final turn of the page reveals that they have joined the woman's husband: a young couple on the deck of a fishing boat rides a rainbow. Youngsters may need some guidance through this symbolic tale, but will likely find the journey rewarding, and quilters of all ages will certainly cotton to it. Ages 6-10.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0618055835
• ISBN 13: 9780618055838
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 32