Description

Jennifer Chiaverini’s latest inspiring novel in the beloved Elm Creek Quilts series beautifully celebrates the traditions of quilting, family bonds, community spirit, and historical legacy.

As autumn sets the Pennsylvania hills ablaze with vibrant colors, Sylvia Bergstrom Compson ponders the uncertain future of Elm Creek Quilts. Though the Elm Creek Quilt Camp remains America’s most cherished quilting retreat, financial difficulties have begun to cast their shadows on the camp and her family’s treasured nineteenth-century estate. Now past eighty, Sylvia is more determined than ever to safeguard her family’s heritage—but she knows she needs new resources, not only financially but also emotionally.

At this pivotal moment, Summer Sullivan, one of Elm Creek Quilts’ original founders, returns with a special request: She wishes to borrow an antique quilt for an exhibit hosted by the Waterford Historical Society. Many decades earlier, Sylvia and her sister Claudia had created this quilt for the renowned Sears National Quilt Contest held at the 1933 Century of Progress Exposition—the famous Chicago World’s Fair. Summer explains how perfectly the Bergstrom sisters’ quilt, highlighting themes such as the Emancipation Proclamation, women’s suffrage, and the rise of labor unions, will fit into the exhibit’s tribute to historical advances.

Yet Sylvia hesitates to loan out a quilt that has languished nearly forgotten in the attic. Despite the honors and ribbons it earned, the quilt sparked tensions that fractured her relationship with her sister Claudia. As Sylvia cautiously retraces the quilt’s journey with Summer, she discovers something unexpected—an inspiring revelation that renews her appreciation for this once-forgotten artwork, reconnects her with lost memories, and illuminates an encouraging pathway forward for herself and the Elm Creek community.