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sarahlreadseverything's review against another edition
2.0
Honestly I love this series, but it really needs to get some new material!! This book just felt like a rehash of half a dozen other books retold in a slightly different way. We've already heard about Sarah's relationship with her mother and how she hates Matt, Slyvia's relationship with Elizabeth, Claudia, James, Richard, Andrew when she was a child or young women. There was not a story in this book which I hadn't read already in another, albeit with slightly different detail, but the same conclusion. Giving it all a Christmas message doesn't disguise the fact that it's all the same. Perhaps I just haven't found the right book in the series yet, but there are so many parts of the story that remain untold (eg: Slyvias life after leaving Elm Creek and before returning) that it seems such a waste to simply retell everything that we've already read. I was severely disapointed and hope the next one I pick up improves!
stephaniealysse's review against another edition
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
mschrock8's review against another edition
3.0
A sweet story with more background on Sylvia's family.
I put a hold on this series to wait to read this Christmas book at the appropriate time.
Borrowed on Hoopla through JCPL.
Listening length six hr 25 min
I put a hold on this series to wait to read this Christmas book at the appropriate time.
Borrowed on Hoopla through JCPL.
Listening length six hr 25 min
gwalt118's review against another edition
2.0
The premise of this book sounded lovely - a woman reminiscing about past Christmases based on aspects of a hidden-away and never-finished quilt. But, it missed the mark for me. Towards the end of the book, I realized that this was the eighth installment in a series. That makes me think I needed more context for the characters. I never really connected to either Sylvia or Sarah or anyone in Sylvia's past. It was somewhat pleasant to hear Sylvia's memories of past Christmases and it did help me get into the Christmas spirit somewhat. But, overall, very much of a meh book.
jbarr5's review against another edition
4.0
The Christmas Quilt
This story starts out with Sylvia and Sarah and they have uncovered the Christmas Quilt that a relative had started and never finished.
The story then goes back in time to when Sylvia was growing up and the economy got worse. Not only did her father have problems selling their horses but they had loans from the bank as did all the neighbors.
When Eleanor, her mother finds out she made more strudel and passed it around to all the neighbors. She then went and cleaned out her closets to give the clothes to others who needed it more. The kids also collected toys to give to others-which is still done.
Love the story of their Christmas pickle. Sad to hear of her mother's passing but nice to hear how they name the horses after her favorite quilt block. Loved all the talks of quilt blocks.
The year Sylvia got her first ever sewing kit was precious. Love how the pickle was discovered and hearing about the tradition of decorating a tree outside.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
This story starts out with Sylvia and Sarah and they have uncovered the Christmas Quilt that a relative had started and never finished.
The story then goes back in time to when Sylvia was growing up and the economy got worse. Not only did her father have problems selling their horses but they had loans from the bank as did all the neighbors.
When Eleanor, her mother finds out she made more strudel and passed it around to all the neighbors. She then went and cleaned out her closets to give the clothes to others who needed it more. The kids also collected toys to give to others-which is still done.
Love the story of their Christmas pickle. Sad to hear of her mother's passing but nice to hear how they name the horses after her favorite quilt block. Loved all the talks of quilt blocks.
The year Sylvia got her first ever sewing kit was precious. Love how the pickle was discovered and hearing about the tradition of decorating a tree outside.
I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
nell1120's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoy these books in general, as I love stories that center around crafting. I also feel the cast of characters is pretty well developed, especislly as you get further along in the series. This one in particular focused on the Christmas season and past Christmasses. There are definitely times you get a bit frustrated with how the characters act, but over all an enjoyable read.
marilynmalloy's review against another edition
3.0
I did not like this one as much as the previous ones. Oh well. Now on to the New Years Quilt... and hopefully the next one (4TH BOOK) will be ready at the library soon!
kairosdreaming's review against another edition
4.0
The Christmas Quilt is one of many in the Elm Creek quilt series by Jeniffer Chiaverini. Even though it is part of a series though, this book can definitely be read as a stand alone. In fact, even though it rehashes things from previous books, Chiaverini describes all incidences within the book well enough that no reference from the firs seven are needed.
The story takes place further back in the time line than some of the other books. It occurs about one year after the first book took place. The scene is Christmas and Sylvia Compton, owner of Elm Creek Manor and the associated quilter's retreat, is thinking back on past Christmases with both fond and sad memories. When Sarah, her helper, brings down the Christmas decorations and an old unfinished Christmas quilt, she can hold back the reminisces about the past. She starts thinking about the different Christmases from when she was a little girl, on up to when she was first married. Similar in every story was the choosing of a Christmas tree, a special star, and a fabulously delicious strudel.
Also on her mind though is the rift between Sarah and her mother. She wanted desperately for the two to see each other this Christmas but Sarah was not as enthusiastic. Sarah and her mother do not get along very well and she doesn't wish to see her. Instead she wants to finish the Christmas quilt found in the attic which had been worked on by so many women before her.
While I was glad to see some of the regular characters returned in this novel, it still lacked a large part of them and I just didn't find the story as engaging. While some of it was interesting, a lot of it was almost copied word for word out of her other books. Naturally these were more of the scenes in the past, but still there were enough and I remembered them well enough that I knew they were directly copied. One other point was that the Christmas quilt that could never get finished, I think that might have remained that way in this story as I cannot remember them mentioning it at the end or what state it was in.
Chiaverini is a very easy writer to read. She's not offensive in any way and gives a decent amount of description when describing her characters and the scenery around. She does however lack a bit in the description department when it comes to describing the quilt in this novel though.
Overall I would say its a nice short read, good for a rainy or snowy afternoon. I wasn't as terribly impressed as I have been with some of her other works, but it fits in the series nicely.
The Christmas Quilt
Copyright 2005
225 pages
The story takes place further back in the time line than some of the other books. It occurs about one year after the first book took place. The scene is Christmas and Sylvia Compton, owner of Elm Creek Manor and the associated quilter's retreat, is thinking back on past Christmases with both fond and sad memories. When Sarah, her helper, brings down the Christmas decorations and an old unfinished Christmas quilt, she can hold back the reminisces about the past. She starts thinking about the different Christmases from when she was a little girl, on up to when she was first married. Similar in every story was the choosing of a Christmas tree, a special star, and a fabulously delicious strudel.
Also on her mind though is the rift between Sarah and her mother. She wanted desperately for the two to see each other this Christmas but Sarah was not as enthusiastic. Sarah and her mother do not get along very well and she doesn't wish to see her. Instead she wants to finish the Christmas quilt found in the attic which had been worked on by so many women before her.
While I was glad to see some of the regular characters returned in this novel, it still lacked a large part of them and I just didn't find the story as engaging. While some of it was interesting, a lot of it was almost copied word for word out of her other books. Naturally these were more of the scenes in the past, but still there were enough and I remembered them well enough that I knew they were directly copied. One other point was that the Christmas quilt that could never get finished, I think that might have remained that way in this story as I cannot remember them mentioning it at the end or what state it was in.
Chiaverini is a very easy writer to read. She's not offensive in any way and gives a decent amount of description when describing her characters and the scenery around. She does however lack a bit in the description department when it comes to describing the quilt in this novel though.
Overall I would say its a nice short read, good for a rainy or snowy afternoon. I wasn't as terribly impressed as I have been with some of her other works, but it fits in the series nicely.
The Christmas Quilt
Copyright 2005
225 pages