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2 internautes sur 2 ont trouvé ce commentaire utile :
4.0étoiles sur 5
Interesting mini bios, lots of living history ideas, Nov. 20 2002
For those interested in learning more about the various roles that women played in the Civil War, this book is a terrific starting point. For those interested in ideas of civilian living history activities, this book has some great ideas for women Civil War reenactors who want to do more than sit under the tent fly until their man returns from battle. For those interested in making a quilt inspired by old-fashioned patterns, this book contains some beautiful projects and good instructions. For those interested in faithfully recreating historically accurate quilts, this book is not for you.After reading Barbara Brackman's wonderful "Quilts from the Civil War," I anxiously awaited "Civil War Women"--expecting another book on recreating historic quilts. Ultimately, I appreciated "Civil War Women" for what it was--a book containing interesting stories about the lives of women abolitionists, newspaper reporters, spies, plantation wives, nurses, government clerks, refugees and soldiers' wives. In the book's nine chapters, Brackman focuses on describing the life of one women from each group, and then discusses others in these roles. Numerous photographs and engravings help take the reader back to the 1860s. I especially loved the suggested activities for reenactors: a quilting bee, giving a stump speech, collecting signatures for an album quilt, smuggling contraband, staging a bazaar, to name a few. Brackman reprints a speech given by Amelia Bloomer and excerpts diaries discussing quilting bees and fairs, which help to provide primary sources for these activities. Even those not involved in living history might be inspired to try some of these activities for a different old-fashioned party. For a book with a quilt on its cover that primarily has been marketed in quilt shops, however, the paucity of original quilts was disappointing. Of the 30-some quilts depicted in "Civil War Women," only a quarter are originals. And although Brackman describes the project quilts as being inspired by originals, in many cases, she does not depict the originals so that the quilter interested in authenticity can determine where accuracy left off and inspiration took over. Unlike the reproduction quilts in "Quilts of the Civil War," which many times appeared very similar to the originals, these quilts just don't quite look like other historic quilts that I have seen from the period. Had this book not clearly targeted reenactors, I would not complain about the quilts. But for those involved in living history for the sake of public education rather than because they like "theme camping," authenticity is important, and the suggestion that reenactors can create good reproduction quilts by relying merely on this book does a disservice.
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