Caroline Shelter and Soar Giveaway!

Get ready for the second Shelter and Soar Giveaway! This time we want to help parents or grandparents with youngsters at home. 

As the author of twenty-five children’s books, I know how important it is that young readers are able to soar to a distant time and place — while staying safe at home.

That’s why this time I am giving away books about Caroline, the character I created for American Girl. Three winners will each receive signed and personalized, softcover copies of Captain of the Ship and Facing the Enemy. Together, these two books contain the original six stories about Caroline.

The time to enter is now! Just leave a comment below by 11:59 PM (Central US time), this Wednesday, April 22, 2020. One entry per person, please.

The three randomly selected winners will be announced the next day here and on my Facebook Author Page.

Mr. Ernst and I planned these giveaways as a gesture of support for readers during such difficult days. Your enthusiastic response to the first one lifted our spirits tenfold. Be safe, and happy reading! 

Giveaway Winners

Congratulations to Bethany Davis, Deborah Schindler Dingledy, Stephanie Romig, Rosanne Tucker-Gilliam, Madelon Willard, and Michelle Vechinsky! Each of these Giveaway winners will receive a complete set of six signed, personalized, first-release Caroline Books, published by American Girl.

Winners were chosen at random from all entries here on Sites & Stories and on my Facebook Author page.  Thanks to all who entered!

Gratitude Giveaway

In honor of my young readers, I’ve decided to hold a Six Books For Six Readers Giveaway!

Each of the six lucky winners will receive a complete set of six signed, hardcover, first-release, beautifully illustrated Caroline books, published by American Girl.

To enter, leave a comment below before Midnight, US Central time, Thursday, November 30, 2017. One entry per person. Winners must provide the name of a reader or library so that I may personalize the books.

Winners will be chosen at random from among all entries here and on my Facebook Author page, and announced on December 1.

Farewell Caroline

American Girl has announced that Caroline Abbott, the 1812 character I created, will be archived.

While I am, of course, disappointed with the decision to retire Caroline, I am grateful to have amazing and wonderful memories.

The Caroline books led me to many historic sites in the United States and Canada. Visiting Sackets Harbor, New York, has been extra special because it is Caroline’s home town.

I’ve also visited American Girl stores from coast to coast. The store associates are consistently awesome.

But the very best part of the experience has been meeting, and hearing from, so many incredible girls (and boys) and their families. I’ve had the privilege of meeting hundreds of young readers who are smart, kind, and excited about reading and history.

From the bottom of my heart, I thank you.

 

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When American Girl shares more details about their plans, I’ll pass them on.

I do have several Caroline programs on my schedule, including my final visit to Sackets Harbor in July! As always, you can find details on the Calendar page of my website.

Caroline’s Quilt – Part 2

It took a long time to piece or appliqué a quilt in Caroline’s day.  In Traitor in the Shipyard, friends help Caroline and Rhonda complete a beautiful quilt top. In the new Caroline mystery, The Smuggler’s Secrets, Caroline presents the quilt top to her cousin Lydia:

“Oh, thank you, Caroline.” Lydia’s eyes were shining. “Sometimes this little cabin feels quite dreary. Now I have something cheerful to look at every single day.”

But the quilt itself was not complete. A quilt is like a sandwich, and the pieced quilt top was the top slice of bread.  Caroline and Lydia also needed a bottom slice of bread, which was often plain cloth.

In places with cold winters, the middle layer was usually made of wool. In the spring, farmers sheared their sheep.  It was a lot of work to clean the wool, pick out snarls, and comb out the fibers.

This 1883 painting shows a girl combing wool to remove tangles and get all the fibers running in the same direction. (Girl Carding Wool, by Maria Wilk)

Once enough wool had been cleaned and combed, the layers of the quilt could be put together. Women spread the bottom layer on a big wooden frame, arranged the combed wool, and then carefully put the pretty quilt top in place.

Then the three layers needed to be stitched together. These are called quilting stitches.

The women who made this quilt stitched straight lines through the blue and white blocks, but added a pretty quilted pattern in the open areas.

The frame was propped up at a height that was comfortable for women to sit and sew.

A Quilting Party, by Enoch Wood Perry, 1876.

A lot of stitches were needed to hold the layers together. In Caroline’s day, girls and women often invited friends to quilting bees. The work went faster, and everyone enjoyed catching up on the news while they sewed.

Quilting Bee, by Henry Mosler. It was painted about 1890, but shows an earlier time.

With luck and hard work, the quilting might be completed in a day. In the 1813 painting below, the woman on the left is removing a quilt from a quilting frame, and it looks as if a party is going to begin.

The Quilting Frolic, by John Lewis Krimmel.

Quilting bees aren’t as common as they were two hundred years ago, but  they still sometimes take place. The photo below was taken at my house in 1983, when I worked at Old World Wisconsin. My friends and I had pieced a quilt top at the historic site, but the season ended before we had a chance to finish it. It was fun, and the finished quilt was beautiful.

Whenever I see an old quilt, I wonder about the girls and/or women who made it. I know it took a lot of hours to complete, but I hope they also took joy in producing something both useful and beautiful.

Caroline’s Quilt – Part 1

In my first Caroline mystery, Traitor in the Shipyard, Caroline and her friend Rhonda decide to make a quilt as a gift for Lydia, Caroline’s cousin. Their first task was to choose a design for their quilt.

Many quilt tops were pieced together. Girls and women cut pieces of cloth and stitched them together to create colorful designs.

This sweet doll quilt is made of Nine Patch blocks. After the maker created nine blocks, she sewed the blocks together. (Wisconsin Historical Society 1951.2359)

Other quilt makers used a technique called appliqué to create pictures from fabric.

This design was one of many appliquéd pictures made on an album quilt in 1847. Wouldn’t Caroline love the ship design? (Grand Rapids Public Museum Collection,  2006.8.1)

Some quilts from Caroline’s time include both pieced blocks and a central picture. Caroline and Rhonda decided to use this approach.

This quilt, made in 1811, includes pieced blocks and a floral design in the center. (Cincinnati Art Museum Collection)

Caroline and Rhonda also wanted their quilt to show their patriotic spirit. If you made a quilt to show your patriotic spirit, what would it look like?

Brown-Francis Family’s Patriotic Quilt, believed to have been made some time between 1800 and 1820. (Smithsonian Collection, NMAH-78-9642)

Two hundred years ago, girls like Caroline made quilts to learn sewing skills and to create beautiful bed coverings. Piecing quilts also let women and girls use tiny scraps of fabric that might otherwise have been wasted. For someone like Lydia, living in a simple log cabin with no other decorations, a pretty quilt would have been a welcome gift!

It’s Up To You!

I’ve loved to read for as long as I can remember. When I was nine or ten, I decided that if reading books was so much fun, writing my own stories would be even better. In a few months my 30th title will be published!

That’s me, lost in a book.

People often ask if my editors at American Girl tell me what to write. No, they don’t. Although I work with a great team of people who help make each book the best it can be, I make up my own stories. I decide what my characters should do.

Here’s Peg Ross, my editor, making notes on one of my manuscripts.

Until now, that is. Catch The Wind:  My Journey With Caroline offers many opportunities for you to decide what the characters should do!

Imagine yourself transported back to Sackets Harbor during the War of 1812. Would you want to leave at once, or would you stay a while? If you saw an enemy ship, would you give chase or go for help? If your best friend was going on a raid, would you tag along or decide it was too dangerous?

In Catch The Wind, you get to decide all of those things—and make lots more choices too. When you finish the book, you might even want to go back and see what happens if you make different choices.

Catch The Wind was the first Choose Your Own Adventure story I’ve ever written. I drew diagrams to help keep everything straight.

Here’s one of my early diagrams. The numbers refer to different scenes.

Here’s part of the graphic organizer my editor made to help us make sure the story flowed properly.

I loved having the opportunity to explore lots of plot ideas and possibilities. I was able to include some situations I didn’t have room to include in the original Caroline stories.

So settle down with the book, and settle in for an adventure that has lots of twists and turns. It’s all up to you!

Time Travel

I’ve been curious about the past ever since I was a little girl.

I read lots of historical novels. When my family visited historic sites, I imagined myself living there long ago.

That’s me, taking a carriage ride at Williamsburg, about 1965.

If you’ve read the original Caroline stories, have you ever wished you could actually meet her? When I was writing the first seven Caroline books, I often wished I could get a real peek at Sackets Harbor as it was during the War of 1812.

Well, that’s the idea that inspired American Girl to create a new kind of adventure for their historical characters.  Catch The Wind:  My Journey With Caroline is a story I wrote about a modern girl who travels back in time and meets Caroline!

Can you imagine what it would be like to suddenly find yourself in Sackets Harbor, New York, after the war started? How would you feel? What questions would you ask? And after you made friends with Caroline, what kind of adventures would you have?

I had a lot of fun writing Catch The Wind.  I hope you have just as much fun reading it!

A New Look—and a New Book!—for Caroline

As some readers know, American Girl is giving the Caroline books, and books about their other historical characters, a new look.  Here’s the scoop.

A company spokesperson explains the update:  “Our new BeForever books feature our beloved historical characters in a new format designed to appeal to girls who like high adventure and contemporary fiction.”

The first six Caroline books will be repackaged as two longer volumes. Meet Caroline,  Caroline’s Secret Message, and A Surprise For Caroline will be presented  as Captain of the Ship:  A Caroline Classic.

And Caroline Takes a Chance, Caroline’s Battle, and Changes for Caroline will be presented as Facing the Enemy:  A Caroline Classic.

Those titles will be released on August 28.

On the same day, American Girl will release my brand new Caroline book!

Have you ever wished you could travel back in time and meet Caroline? A modern girl gets to do just that in Catch The Wind:  My Journey With Caroline.

What if you suddenly found yourself in Caroline’s world, right in the middle of the War of 1812? How would it feel to know your home is under attack—and how would you stay strong during such a scary time?

Join Caroline on adventures where the two of you could find ways to help the Americans win, confront a possible spy, or even plunge headfirst into ice-cold Lake Ontario! Your journey back in time can take whatever twists and turns you choose, as you select from a variety of exciting options in this multiple-ending story.

I’ll have lots more to share about Catch The Wind as the publication date draws closer. And as always, you can find information, photos, and behind-the-scenes news about the books on the American Girl page of my website. Happy reading!

 

Special Events for American Girl Fans

I’ve got some great events scheduled for American Girl fans in June, and I’d love to see you!

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June 6, American Girl Place, New York City

I’ll be meeting readers and signing books from 11 AM – 1 PM.

 

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June 7-8,  Sackets Harbor Battlefield Historic Site, Sackets Harbor, New York
I’ll be participating in a Lawn Party on June 7th, and leading a workshop for young writers on June 8. Come see Caroline’s home town!

Pre-registration is required. To register for either of these events: 315-646-3634; Constance.Barone@parks.ny.gov

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June 14, Fort McHenry National Monument, Baltimore, Maryland 
I’ll be participating in a special program, and signing books, from 10 AM – 12 PM. There will be other festivities as well. Come celebrate Flag Day at the site that inspired our national anthem!

Tickets are required. Visit the Friends of Fort McHenry site for more information.

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June 15, Riversdale House Museum, Riverdale Park, Maryland
I’ll be joining readers for a party at 1:30. Riversdale, a National Historic Landmark, was built between 1801-1807, and guided tours are available. I’m excited about visiting a beautiful home that was standing during Caroline’s time!

Registration by June 2 is required for the tea party. Call 301-864-0420.

 

I’ll be visiting a handful of other American Girl stores this summer, so watch my calendar page for more information.  I hope to see you soon!