About this Event
Join New York Times bestselling author who returns with her beloved Elm Creek Quilts series in a new novel! is the first Elm Creek quilt novel since 2019’s The Christmas Boutique. Jennifer will be in conversation with Executive Director David Weaver.
The purchase of The Museum of Lost Quilts waives the $10 registration fee.
OHIOANA LIBRARY and STITCHING SISTERS OHIO are Gramercy’s Community Partners for this program.
Summer Sullivan, the youngest founding member of Elm Creek Quilts, has spent the last two years pursuing a master’s degree in history at the University of Chicago. Her unexpected return home to the celebrated quilter’s retreat is met with delight but also concern from her mother, Gwen; her best friend, Sarah; master quilter Sylvia; and her other colleagues—and rightly so. Stymied by writer’s block, Summer hasn’t finished her thesis, and she can’t graduate until she does.
Elm Creek Manor offers respite while Summer struggles to meet her extended deadline. She finds welcome distraction in organizing an exhibit of antique quilts as a fundraiser to renovate Union Hall, the 1863 Greek Revival headquarters of the Waterford Historical Society. But Summer’s research uncovers startling facts about Waterford’s past, prompting unsettling questions about racism, economic injustice, and political corruption within their community, past and present.
As Summer’s work progresses, quilt lovers and history buffs praise the growing collection, but affronted local leaders demand that she remove all references to Waterford’s troubled history. As controversy threatens the exhibit’s success, Summer fears that her pursuit of the truth might cost the Waterford Historical Society their last chance to save Union Hall. Her only hope is to rally the quilting community to her cause.
The Museum of Lost Quilts is a warm and deeply moving story about the power of collective memory. With every fascinating quilt she studies, Summer finds her passion for history renewed—and discovers a promising new future for herself.
Jennifer Chiaverini is the New York Times bestselling author of thirty-four novels, including critically acclaimed historical fiction and the beloved Elm Creek Quilts series. In 2020, she was awarded an Outstanding Achievement Award from the Wisconsin Library Association for her novel Resistance Women. In 2023, the WLA awarded her the honor of Notable Wisconsin Author for her significant contributions to the state’s literary heritage. Chiaverini earned a BA from the University of Notre Dame and an MA in English Language and Literature from the University of Chicago. She, her husband, and their two sons call Madison, Wisconsin home.
David Weaver became Executive Director of Ohioana Library in 2013 after serving as Ohioana’s Development Director since 2005. Before that, he held senior development positions with the WOSU Stations and the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. He also served as executive director of Malabar Farm Foundation and managing director of Columbus Light Opera, which he co-founded. David is the author of Black Diva of the Thirties: The Life of Ruby Elzy, published in 2004 by University Press of Mississippi. He attended Ohio State University and the University of Cincinnati, majoring in voice.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Gramercy Books, 2424 East Main Street, Columbus, United States
USD 10.00 to USD 28.00