Boy and the Quilt with Other Book

With a little help from his mother and sister, a young boy makes a quilt of his own. Includes instructions for making a quilt and a comforter.

School Library Journal

K-Gr 2-- ``How to Make a Quilt'' would be a good subtitle for this book. A boy, his mother, and his sister (the family is irritatingly unnamed and generic) each make a quilt. The focus is on the boy's work; the mother gives suggestions (```. . . wouldn't it look better with the dark brown between the checks and stripes?''') but they are pointedly rejected. (```It's my quilt,' said the boy.''') In places the text is highly descriptive but lacks sufficient pictures; occasionally the colored-pencil illustrations are distractingly detailed. Some touches are humorous (a little brother sailing a boat in the toilet), while others are cloyingly cute. Colors and patterns are used to dizzying effect, but the faces of family members (and their pets) often share the same inane expressions. The book is intended for children old enough to use a sewing machine, with fairly involved instructions for duplicating the project in the back; the format, however, is more appropriate for younger readers. Kurtz deals honestly with the effort involved in the quilt-making process, and the boy obviously enjoys this nontraditional activity. Unfortunately, the story deserves better pictures. --Ruth Smith, formerly at Chicago Public Library