The Keeping Quilt

The Keeping Quilt, written and illustrated by Patricia Polacco, is a story about heritage. This story is pretty cool, the first immigrants of Patricia's family come to America and create a quilt out of the leftover fabrics worn by lost family members still in the old country. The quilt is passed down through several generations, including Polacco's own children. This is a good book for discussing family heritage and traditions, providing a wonderful opportunity for text to self connections for the kids. What's really interesting about this book is that it's a prefect example of Polacco's work, taking influences from family, tradition, and of course, goats! I find that the more I read Polacco's books, the less I have to say, it just all sounds the same. I suppose what I could talk about is the illustrations, as they are very evident of her artistic influences from Norman Rockwell. Personally, I am very afraid of Rockwell's style, it just sticks me as a bit unnerving. It's not necessarily the rough pencils sketches that are allowed to remain on the finished piece, but more of the texture of how the skin is portrayed, it reminds me of a ghost or maybe a zombie. I know that things can't all be visually perfect, but maybe that's all in the eye of the beholder, to each his own!