Sarah's Quilt

This is the continuing saga of Sarah Prine. I liked the first book so much, I couldn't resist this and the third in the series, once I learned they existed.

Ah, another page turner that leaves the reader wanting more. Sarah's family grows larger and more complicated. The artistry of these books is in the details, flowing along so naturally I felt like I was there, sitting on the porch and in the middle of the heart-stopping moments. The story is full of adventure, adversity, good and bad people, terror, joy, warmth, personalities, and more. It's a window into our past and how our country was built, and what it took to build it on a personal level.

I've already purchased a set of these books for a gift, before reading the last in the show more series. They're that good. show less

I was much afraid this book would not be able to live up to its predecessor, These is My Words. For one thing, I knew it would be missing one of its most dynamic characters and how could it have that same impact. It would be set in a later period as well, and that seemed to me to invite a less stirring tale. Ah, I have underestimated this terrific writer, for she wove this story and took me right back into Sarah’s world.

I love books like these that feel authentic to their times, that weave an adventure you would never want to live but enjoy participating in from afar. What a hard life our ancestors lead settling this country. It would have required a lot of courage, not to mention the perseverance to keep starting over disaster after show more disaster, loss after loss. I hardly came up for air while reading it and now I’m quite anxious to get to the third book in the series.

Another thank you to Lori for introducing me to this series of books. Great fun and totally memorable. show less

Sarah’s Quilt is a sequel to These Is My Words, the story of Sarah Prine and her family as they homestead in the territory of Arizona. This second book opens in April of 1906, and find a widowed Sarah still living on her ranch and very much involved in her family’s affairs. This is the beginning of a difficult summer for the family, there is a drought that has lasted almost three years at this point, her good friend and neighbour, Rudolfo Maldonado has made it clear that he would like to marry Sarah and she must decide if she is ready for that kind of relationship again. One branch of the family lives in San Francisco and when the devastating earthquake hits, Sarah and her father-in-law travel to California to be of assistance. A show more young man shows up claiming to be the son of Ernest, her long missing brother, it soon becomes clear that he means to stay and make a claim on the ranch. Her mother is showing more and more signs of senility and her beloved sister-in-law is experiencing a difficult pregnancy.

The fictional character of Sarah Prine is based on the author’s great grandmother, and one of my all time favourite characters. This is a truly interesting story set in the Arizona Territory during a time of change. Horses were giving way to the new horseless carriages, gas lighting and sewer systems were being installed in the cities of Phoenix and Tucson and the author has caught this feeling of growth and change in her story of this one family’s life over the course of a few months time in 1906.

Although I didn’t love this story as much as the first book, I am glad that I was able to revisit Sarah and see how her life evolved. I know there is one more book in the trilogy, which I may pick up at some point, but for now I am content that her middle years found her productive, peaceful and looking forward to the future. show less

Well, I'm a little bummed. The book previous to this, These Is My Words, featuring Sarah Agnes Prine is probably in my top ten of all time. So I had high expectations for this book which was to continue Sarah's story. I still love Sarah and think she is a wonderful character, but the storyline of this book just didn't do it for me. I felt like all of the dramatic moments seemed so disjointed. I don't want to ruin it for anyone, so I'll say there were some points that flowed, but others just seemed to be thrown in there to break up the monotony. It moved much slower than TIMW, and I was hoping to see a little more to come of two love interests. Those could have been some really great additions, but little came of either. Now I'm debating show more about reading the third book The Star Garden. show less

Due to some health issues I've been spending a lot of time reading this past week - and having a couple of good books certainly helped pass the time quickly. My book club read These is My Words by Nancy Turner in the past year. These are the next two installments to Sarah Prine's life in the Arizona territories of the early 190s.

These are good books - full of excitement, pioneer vim and vigor and the impossibilities life. They are also rather predictable. But, that predictability is not ridiculous - more like what you expect when you turn on an old western.

Sarah and her family are stuck on the edge of the Mexican/Arizona desert - trying to make a living on a drought stricken ranch with too many mouths to feed and not enough rain. In show more the midst of this drought her Mexican neighbor gets a bit too big for his britches and tries everything to rid the countryside of her family.

The books are filled with family lives and goings on, with the day to day hardships of living and trying not to die. You really care about them. You want to see them succeed, you want to see them live.

So, I liked them and am glad I read them - but they aren't as good as the first book though...in fact they get a bit long on Sarah's descriptions and the longing for something she can't quite find...and of course it's right in front of her nose. I also really hate the titles...all three titles are not particularly enticing. show less

Well it was an enjoyable read but not very believable
It seemed that everything that can go wrong did and even things that you do not expect,did. It started to get annoying after a while.
Then there were stories she started or people I liked and she spoke about to then abandon that story and that person and then quickly killed her off.

Those were the negatives but I still enjoyed reading this and I even read during the day. This book is a 3.5 stars book imo.

A little slower than "These Is My Words," and I'm a little frustrated by the feeling that the author has changed Sarah's voice. I really enjoyed the diary-like format of the previous book, and find myself missing it here. I don't feel like Sarah's coming through as strongly, and her personality seems a bit changed. Regardless, I'm still burning through it.