Maybelle in Stitches by Joyce Magnin

BOOK SUMMARY:

Maybelle Kazinzki can’t sew. She was after all, the only girl in the seventh grade Home Economics class to sew the zipper in the neck hole of the A-Line dress they were supposed to make. But when she finds an unfinished quilt in the attic of her mother’s house she gets the crazy idea to finish it—somehow, come heck or high water. She thinks it will help fill the lonely nights while her husband, Holden, is serving overseas during World War II.

Her recently departed mother’s quilt is made from scraps of material Maybelle traces back to her mother’s childhood, her grandmother’s childhood and her own childhood. She tries to add one of Holden’s stripes to it but the sewing is not going well and neither is her life. After receiving some harsh news, Maybelle’s faith falters and she puts the quilt away and stops trusting God. But God is faithful- no matter what. And it’ll take a group of neighborhood women armed with quilting needles to help Maybelle believe that.

MY THOUGHTS:

I thoroughly enjoyed this book as it took us on a journey through World War II. I found it interesting to see it from the women's side of it, as they are at home waiting to hear something, anything, from their men.  What a difference it was compared to life now of 24 hour news. The women had to be strong all the time as they survived alone with no knowledge of what their men were dealing with.

I loved how the women all spent time around the quilt talking, sharing and encouraging each other. This makes for a great story, and is also a great reminder of how we should live and encourage others.

There are some great lessons applied to the story and the characters have great depth to them.  It is truly a interesting and well written book. I highly recommend it.

Disclosure: I received a print copy of the book in exchange for an honest review