"Chiaverini has once again written an intense and beautiful
book-so much so that readers will almost hear the hollow
echo of the fife and drum as they immerse themselves in
every compelling page . . . Truly unforgettable." -BookPage
In 1862, the men of Water's Ford, Pennsylvania, rally to
President Lincoln's call while Dorothea Granger marshals her
friends to "wield their needles for the Union." Meanwhile,
Anneke Bergstrom hides the shame she feels for her husband's
pacifism; gifted writer Gerda Bergstrom takes on local
Southern sympathizers in the pages of the Water's Ford
Register; and Constance Wright struggles to help her husband
gain entry to the Union Army-despite the color of his skin.
As the women work, hope, and pray, the men they love
confront loneliness, boredom, and danger on the battlefield.
But the women of the sewing circle also forge a new
independence that will forever alter the patchwork of life
in the Elm Creek Valley.