Women cope with Civil War in ‘Union Quilters’

In 1862, the Civil War has come knocking at the door of the community of Water's Ford, Pa. As loyal Union supporters the local men rally to answer the call to enlist.

While the men march off to their unknown fates, the women of Elm Creek Valley are determined to contribute their share and turn their sewing skills from home use to crafting quilts and other necessary items so desperately needed by their menfolk.

In “The Union Quilters,” Jennifer Chiaverini’s latest Elm Creek Quilts novel, the women left behind in times of war show their strength and compassion in a fascinating historical story that sheds a new light on the hardships faced at home during the arduous Civil War.

The ladies of Water’s Ford each face widely varying, yet common fears as the war rages on. Constance Wright’s husband, Abel, is an accepted member of the community, and a skilled rifleman, but is turned away from enlisting simply because he is black. Dorothea Granger Nelson worries about her educated schoolmaster husband Thomas, who carried her Dove In The Window quilt into battle, not realizing that she was pregnant with their second child.

Dorothea’s pregnant sister-in-law Charlotte Granger is worried about her husband, Dr. Jeremy Granger, who sends comforting regular updates on the men from home to his wife, but also sends more detailed letters to his former love, Gerda Berstrom, causing ill will and strife between the two women. Anneke Bergstrom must face whispers from the town since her husband refused to enlist, preferring to stay out of the fray.

A patriotic project to supply new hospitals in Washington with quilts unites the women, and the project turns into an opportunity for them to show they are capable to run their lives, their families and their community with great success. Though tension and worry reign over the small community, the women do their best to support one another and hold their families together until their men come marching home.

The 17th book in the Elm Creek Quilts series, “The Union Quilters” is a deeper look at the original women who began the quilting group. With a sharp eye to detail and historical fact, Chiaverini has combined the stories of the women left behind during war with how the art of quilting allowed them to cope to create an intriguing story that is timely with the 150th anniversary of the Civil War approaching.

This novel is one of Chiaverini’s best works to date.