Martha Ann is 12 years old when Papa finally purchases her freedom from slavery and moves the family from Tennessee to Liberia. On Market Days, Martha Ann watches the British navy patrolling the Liberian coast to stop slave catchers from kidnapping family and friends and forcing them back into slavery.
Martha Ann decides to thank Queen Victoria in person for sending the navy. But first, she has to save money for the voyage, find a suitable gift for the queen, and withstand the ridicule of those who learn of her impossible dream to meet the Queen of England.
Email Kyra Hicks if you would prefer to pay for your autographed copy by check or money order. For shipping outside of the US, please email Kyra directly for the correct shipping costs.
“Martha Ann’s story bears witness that quilts have always been repositories of meaning and beauty. This heartfelt, inspirational, and historical account of perseverance is sure to inspire all who read it.” - Dr. Carolyn Mazloomi, writer, historian, and quilter
“Martha Ann shows us how her lifelong dream to sew a quilt and present it to Queen Victoria came true against all odds. Children and parents alike can enjoy this poignant and endearing story.” - Janet Stanley, Warren M. Robbins Library, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution
“Kyra Hicks has brought to light a fascinating life story of a young black girl born into slavery in East Tennessee. Martha Ann’s story is inspiration, delightful, and true. I can’t wait to share this book with a special young child in my life.” - Merikay Waldvogel, Quilt historian and author
"Lee Edward Födi's watercolour illustrations have a naive, folk art appeal. The full-page scenes provide a sense of place, from the coffee fields to Windsor Castle." Recommended. - CM: Canadian Review of Materials Review by Linda Ludke,a librarian in London, ON
"This story of a freed slave who sews a quilt for England's queen is a tear-jerker of the first order, as uplifting as it is heartbraking." - Anne Levy, Book Buds Kids Lit Reviews
Must Have for Your Home Library!
This book is the first comprehensive guide to African American quilt history and contemporary practices. Black Threads declares there are 1 million African American quilters who spend $118.9 million on quilting expenditures per year!
Black Threads offers over 1,700 bibliographic references, many of them annotated, covering exhibit catalogs, books, newspapers, magazines, dissertations, films, novels, poetry, speeches, works of art, advertisements, patterns, greeting cards, auction results, ephemeral items, and online resources on African American quilting. The book also includes primary research done by the author on the Internet usage of African American quilters, a listing of 100 museums with African American–made quilts in their permanent collections, a directory of African American quilting groups in 29 states, and a detailed timeline that covers 200 years of African American quilting and needle arts events.
Foreword by Cuesta R. Benberry ISBN: 0-7864-1374-3. 242pp. 8 page full color insert, 30 B&W photos, $45.00, 2003.
Email Kyra Hicks to order your autographed copy of Black Threads!
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