MOOSHKA, A QUILT STORY

Transcription

1 JKT_C64966.qxb_Mooshka-jacket/PLC 29/09/2011 8:58 AM Page 1 Children s ISBN: $ PASCHKIS Karla had an unusual quilt. She called it Mooshka. MOOSHKA Karla loves the quilt her grandmother made for her using old scraps of fabric. Mooshka keeps Karla warm on cold nights and com- A QUILT STORY forts her when she can t sleep. But that isn t the best part. Julie Paschkis grew up in Pennsylvania and attended Cornell University and the School for American Craftsmen at RIT, where she earned a BFA. Julie, a former elementary school art teacher, now works full-time painting, creating commercial illustrations, and illustrating children s books. Some of her books include WHERE IS CATKIN?; SUMMER BIRDS: THE BUTTERFLIES OF MARIA MERIAN; and PABLO NERUDA: POET OF THE PEOPLE. She lives in Seattle, Washington. Karla s quilt kept her warm on cold nights and made her feel safe. But that wasn t the only reason Karla s quilt was special MOOSHKA, A QUILT STORY WRITTEN AND ILLUSTRATED BY Julie Paschkis At night, each colorful piece of cloth tells Karla wonderful stories. The yellow one, once a tablecloth, speaks of happy evenings in Grandmother s kitchen; the red one tells of the time when Karla s aunt made it into a flying cape. But when new baby sister Hannah arrives, Karla s routine is upset and Mooshka falls silent. Happily, Karla and her special quilt soon find a generous and loving way to start up the stories again. Julie Paschkis, a brilliant storyteller both in words and in pictures, works her magic again in this tender story of a young girl and her gift for connecting with the people she loves. ISBN 13: ISBN 10: $ Printed and bound in Singapore Job: Title:Mooshka 09-AC64966 #175 SQ Dtp:44 Page:JKT

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6 Published by PEACHTREE PUBLISHERS 1700 Chattahoochee Avenue Atlanta, Georgia To Karla Paschkis JP MOOSHKA A QUILT STORY Text and illustrations 2012 by Julie Paschkis All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher. Illustrations created in India ink and gouache on 100% rag archival watercolor paper. Title typeset in Dieter Steffmann s Kalenderblatt Grotesk; text typeset in International Typeface Corporation s Fenice by Aldo Novarese. Printed and manufactured in October 2011 by Tien Wah in Singapore First Edition Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Paschkis, Julie. Mooshka, a quilt story / written and illustrated by Julie Paschkis. p. cm. Summary: Karla s quilt Mooshka tells her stories about the pieces of fabric that Mooshka is made from, but when Karla s baby sister is born, Mooshka falls silent until Karla overcomes her jealousy and shares Mooshka with the baby. ISBN / [1. Quilts--Fiction. 2. Sisters--Fiction. 3. Babies--Fiction. 4. Sharing-- Fiction.] I. Title. PZ7.P2686Mo 2012 [E]--dc Written and Illustrated by JULIE PASCHKIS JULIE PASCHKIS

7 Karla had an unusual quilt. She called it Mooshka.

8 Mooshka kept her warm on cold nights and had a nice toasty smell. Its colors and patterns made her room bright and cheery even on the rainiest of days. If there was something scary under the bed, it snuggled tight around her and made her feel safe. But that wasn t why Karla s quilt was unusual.

9 At bedtime Mooshka always said, Sweet dreams. First thing in the morning Mooshka might say, Pancakes. Mooshka was different because it could talk to her.

10 Karla s grandmother had made the quilt from scraps of old fabric that she called schnitz. As she sewed the pieces together, she told Karla stories.

11 If Karla couldn t sleep in the middle of the night, she would put her hand on a schnitz and it would tell her its story. Mooshka would go on and on until Karla was fast asleep.

12 Each bit of fabric had a different way of speaking. The yellow schnitz spoke in a soft cottony voice. I was a tablecloth at Grandmother s farmhouse, which was all right, especially when something sweet spilled. I was glad to be useful. But once when your Aunt Marjorie was a girl, she made me into a tent and told fortunes beneath my golden folds. Now that was glorious!

13 The blue schnitz had a sturdy voice. Grandpa Will lived on the other side of the mountain. He walked for three days over the hills and asked Lily Jane to marry him. I was the kerchief around his neck. When he reached the apple orchard, he went right up to her and said, I m yours, now or never. And he wiped his brow with me and didn t leave until she said yes.

14 The red schnitz spoke in a cheery tone. When your mother was just your age, she thought she could fly. She made me into a cape and jumped out of the cherry tree. Such fun I fluttered and flapped in the wind. She broke her toe but that wasn t my fault.

15 Karla loved listening to the stories. Sometimes she would talk about something the quilt had told her and her mother would say Now, how did you know that?

16 One day a little white crib was moved into Karla s room. Hannah was in the crib. That night Mooshka didn t say a word, not even Sweet dreams. Karla could think of many words. Unfair. Stinky. My room. But Mooshka was silent.

17 Night after night Karla would put her hand on a schnitz hoping for a story, but Mooshka kept quiet. But Mooshka still didn t speak. Karla tried to start the stories. Do you remember when you were the curtains in Dad s old sailboat? Do you remember when you were a Halloween costume for the dog?

18 Once, in the middle of the night, Hannah started to cry. She cried and cried. Karla squeezed her eyes shut and put her hands over her ears, but she could still hear Hannah crying.

19 Sister, said Mooshka. Hannah stopped crying and began to sniffle. Karla got out of bed. She picked up her quilt and carried it to the crib. She puffed Mooshka in the air and let it float gently down on Hannah.

20 Karla put her hand on the green schnitz and whispered, This is from the pajamas that I wore when I was little. Almost as small as you. When I was a baby I would stand in this crib and crow like a rooster every morning.

21 Hannah was quiet and Mooshka was quiet and Karla went on and on.

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