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Minna's Patchwork Coat
In this charming historical novel, acclaimed artist Lauren A. Mills reimagines her beloved picture book, The Rag Coat, with fifty delicate pencil illustrations and an expanded story about a resilient little girl, her patchwork coat, and how the two bring a community together. Minna and her family don't have much in their small Appalachian cabin, but "people only need people," Papa always reminds her. Unable to afford a winter coat to wear to school, she's forced to use an old feed sack to keep her warm. Then Papa's terrible cough from working in the coal mines takes him away forever, and Minna has a hard time believing that anything will be right again...until her neighbors work tirelessly to create a coat for her out of old fabric scraps. Now Minna must show her teasing classmates that her coat is more than just rags--it's a collection of their own cherished memories, each with a story to share.
288 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
April 28, 2021
I enjoyed this middle-grade book set in the Appalachian Mountains in 1908. Minna, a young girl, learns to appreciate nature and realizes the importance of friendship and inclusion. I love the characters of Aunt Nora, Lester and Mama. Now I want to read The Rag Coat!
April 6, 2022
This was one of the best books I’ve ever read!! The ending really touched me. I currently love reading this time period , so when I saw this book I knew it was a must read! I am in middle school and this book is perfect for children in my grade! Love , love , love!!
November 6, 2015
For decades, readers have cherished author-illustrator Mills’s award-winning picture book The Rag Coat so much that they wanted more—finally, Mills has obliged. In the early 1900s, Minna’s impoverished Appalachian family can’t afford a winter coat for her, meaning she can’t go to school and is an outcast among the other children. When, after tragedy, the sewing mothers of the community come together to quilt a coat for her out of scraps from their own children’s favorite old possessions, Minna faces an interesting dilemma. She loves the children from their mothers’ stories, and has trouble reconciling the meanness they display towards her (and the prejudice some display towards her biracial friend) with their secret selves. This nuanced story about bullying has instant-classic appeal stemming from the setting’s rustic charm, the goodness of the characters, Mills’s deft and humorous wordplay, and—of course—the beautiful works of art that accompany the prose. This is the kind of book that’s guaranteed to be treasured. Ages 8-12
November 13, 2015
Everything about this book is wonderful--the illustrations, the writing, the characters, the history, the sadness, wisdom, and humor. The themes are timeless: Do girls still have a tendency to gang up on each other and be mean? Do kids still struggle with a parent's death? Do kids still struggle with poverty? Do older sisters still take care of a younger sibling? Does racial tension still exist in this world? Do kids still love something that was specially handmade that other kids like to make fun of?
November 6, 2015
Minna's Patchwork Coat demonstrates Lauren Mills' amazingly diverse creative talents as both author and illustrator! From her wonderful story with a positive caring message to her stunningly beautiful cover painting to her beautifully sensitive interior pencil drawings, Mills' debut elementary school chapter book is certain to engage and inspire every young reader!!!
April 1, 2020
Minna is the girl we all wish we were when we were children. Even if she’s going through hard times and trials, she is still finding the silver lining in everything! The setting was easy to wrap your head around and so beautifully portrayed. Aunt Nora tells it like it is, but still makes you want to hug her for her kindness. I originally thought this book seemed too serious for a kid’s book, but the message is so perfect that I disagreed with my initial assumption. I can’t wait to read this to my daughter when she gets older!
November 25, 2024
DNF around page 100
The Rag Coat is one of my most beloved children's books, and for that reason I was very excited about this but I also had high expectations.
And while I did enjoy learning a bit more about Minna and her family, there wasn't much that I felt was all that necessary. On top of that, there was a bunch of other stuff added that was definitely not needed, like the native American medicine woman's pagan beliefs.
The book itself was fine as far as the writing style and pacing goes, but personally it just wasn't for me.
The Rag Coat is one of my most beloved children's books, and for that reason I was very excited about this but I also had high expectations.
And while I did enjoy learning a bit more about Minna and her family, there wasn't much that I felt was all that necessary. On top of that, there was a bunch of other stuff added that was definitely not needed, like the native American medicine woman's pagan beliefs.
The book itself was fine as far as the writing style and pacing goes, but personally it just wasn't for me.
December 17, 2015
Treat yourself to this book, especially if you are a teacher, or were once a child in a house of modest means but much love.
December 16, 2015
By
Anne L. Larsen
This review is from: Minna's Patchwork Coat (Hardcover)
I read my mother's copy of this book and have been following its evolution through the author's posts on social media. I hope to receive this book for Christmas. I share Ms. Mills' fondness for the Dolly Parton song "Coat of Many Colors" and I am delighted that Mills chose to develop backstory for this musical vignette. In particular, I love the way she has stitched the human need for stories - our own and everyone else's - into the fabric of Minna's coat. She is wearing her entire community, and the knowledge that even some of the bullies and creeps have their wounds and secret joys. Once she learns of these, her attitude toward these children changes; once they realize she knows their stories, their attitude toward her changes as well. We all long to be understood, and it is understanding that defeats the rancor and establishes the field for accord, if not friendship. Barry Lopez, in his stunning short story "Crow and Weasel" says we all have an obligation to learn to tell stories, and to hold stories told to us by others. We need stories to keep us safe, and like water and salt, we need stories to survive. Vicktor Frankl, author and psychotherapist [Man's Search For Meaning] says that no matter how devastating our situation, no matter how thoroughly we are trapped or crushed, we always retain control over our attitude toward that situation - the way we map meaning onto our experience. And that this meaning comes wrapped in stories. Minna's situation is dire, yet her joy and love are abundant because she is loved herself. I teach in rural West Virginia, not too far from where Ms. Mills sets this story. Sadly, the kind of grinding poverty depicted in this 19th century tale is very much alive and well here. So, too, are the deep prejudices of the kind that play a central role in this novel. I would absolutely recommend this book to my colleagues as a read-aloud and as a chapter book for fourth grade and up. I want the students here to make a coat of many colors that their entire class could wear [metaphorically] and share. They need to learn the stories they hold in common, even if the characters are particular to each one of them. Absent fathers, addiction, foster care, parents working multiple jobs, frustration and isolation. I also want them to learn how owning those stories can transform them - they can become the actors in their own futures instead of passively subsiding into an unsatisfying or even deadly narrative. This novel shows them one way to do this and classroom discussion of this story will teach them other strategies, including ones they did not know they held within themselves.
Lauren Mills is a multiple award-winning illustrator whose portraits are especially powerful. In this novel, she has shown that, just as she can lay down a pencil line that perfectly captures a gesture, a soft tension in the face or hands, she can lay down language, too. As a writer and artist myself, I can see how her visual arts skills have made her language skills vivid and precise, with just the right details to tell us exactly what we need to know for the story to breathe. Treat yourself to this book, but especially if you are a teacher. Or a quilter. Or were once a poor child.
December 16, 2015
By
Anne L. Larsen
This review is from: Minna's Patchwork Coat (Hardcover)
I read my mother's copy of this book and have been following its evolution through the author's posts on social media. I hope to receive this book for Christmas. I share Ms. Mills' fondness for the Dolly Parton song "Coat of Many Colors" and I am delighted that Mills chose to develop backstory for this musical vignette. In particular, I love the way she has stitched the human need for stories - our own and everyone else's - into the fabric of Minna's coat. She is wearing her entire community, and the knowledge that even some of the bullies and creeps have their wounds and secret joys. Once she learns of these, her attitude toward these children changes; once they realize she knows their stories, their attitude toward her changes as well. We all long to be understood, and it is understanding that defeats the rancor and establishes the field for accord, if not friendship. Barry Lopez, in his stunning short story "Crow and Weasel" says we all have an obligation to learn to tell stories, and to hold stories told to us by others. We need stories to keep us safe, and like water and salt, we need stories to survive. Vicktor Frankl, author and psychotherapist [Man's Search For Meaning] says that no matter how devastating our situation, no matter how thoroughly we are trapped or crushed, we always retain control over our attitude toward that situation - the way we map meaning onto our experience. And that this meaning comes wrapped in stories. Minna's situation is dire, yet her joy and love are abundant because she is loved herself. I teach in rural West Virginia, not too far from where Ms. Mills sets this story. Sadly, the kind of grinding poverty depicted in this 19th century tale is very much alive and well here. So, too, are the deep prejudices of the kind that play a central role in this novel. I would absolutely recommend this book to my colleagues as a read-aloud and as a chapter book for fourth grade and up. I want the students here to make a coat of many colors that their entire class could wear [metaphorically] and share. They need to learn the stories they hold in common, even if the characters are particular to each one of them. Absent fathers, addiction, foster care, parents working multiple jobs, frustration and isolation. I also want them to learn how owning those stories can transform them - they can become the actors in their own futures instead of passively subsiding into an unsatisfying or even deadly narrative. This novel shows them one way to do this and classroom discussion of this story will teach them other strategies, including ones they did not know they held within themselves.
Lauren Mills is a multiple award-winning illustrator whose portraits are especially powerful. In this novel, she has shown that, just as she can lay down a pencil line that perfectly captures a gesture, a soft tension in the face or hands, she can lay down language, too. As a writer and artist myself, I can see how her visual arts skills have made her language skills vivid and precise, with just the right details to tell us exactly what we need to know for the story to breathe. Treat yourself to this book, but especially if you are a teacher. Or a quilter. Or were once a poor child.
November 30, 2015
3.5 stars. This review is also available on my blog, Read Till Dawn.
First, let me just say that I debated about putting that teaser at the top of the page. The story isn't plotted out at all the way it suggests, and it isn't actually until the end of the book that Minna actually takes her patchwork coat to school.
Marketing quibbles aside, though, let's talk story. I thought this was a really cool one, because it took something I knew very little about (life in the Appalachians), and turned it into a fascinating background for the story. Minna's Patchwork Coat is full of poignant messages about family, friendship, and racism, and all the way those three subjects can be woven together. A boy, Lester, who's part African America, part white, and part Native American is despised by everyone but the Native American grandmother he lives with - until he and Minna become friends. His grandmother, Aunt Nora, is so smart and so good at healing and yet is left so entirely out of the community because of the color of her skin. And Minna, of course, is just as cut out of the community, but for a different reason: she's so poor she can't afford a coat.
This is a really good example of how middle grade novels can still dig into deep topics and come up with some serious themes, without ever straying onto edgy territory. Minna's Patchwork Coat is a wonderful book for kids of any age, full of no more violence than the (unseen) death of Minna's convalescent father. It is somehow a gentle book, even as it depicts grief and racism and bullying and everything else Minna struggles with throughout the book - gentle, because it's honest without ever once beginning to relish its harsher themes. It comes across as a very honest book, portraying the true emotions and experiences of a little girl growing up in the Appalachians - one whose father dies, whose best friend is shunned by the rest of her society, and whose family is so poor she literally can't go to school because she doesn't have a warm coat for walking to school in the winter.
I think kids will appreciate the straight-forward depiction of Minna's reality, while still being enchanted by the stories behind the patchwork coat. I know I certainly would have loved Minna's Patchwork Coat at a younger age, because I would enjoy the mix of historical fiction (I always loved books that made me feel smart by teaching me something) and optimism. For at its core, despite the hard themes that run through it, Minna's Patchwork Coat is a story about an extremely optimistic girl who learns some sad truths but still does her part to draw her community together through the patchwork coat made from their most beloved memories.
Do I recommend it? Yes. I'm not going to say I think everyone should run out and buy it this instant, but I do think it's a good book. It's worth a read it it's handy, and it's definitely worth looking into if you know a kid who's into historical fiction.
Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from KidLitCon.
First, let me just say that I debated about putting that teaser at the top of the page. The story isn't plotted out at all the way it suggests, and it isn't actually until the end of the book that Minna actually takes her patchwork coat to school.
Marketing quibbles aside, though, let's talk story. I thought this was a really cool one, because it took something I knew very little about (life in the Appalachians), and turned it into a fascinating background for the story. Minna's Patchwork Coat is full of poignant messages about family, friendship, and racism, and all the way those three subjects can be woven together. A boy, Lester, who's part African America, part white, and part Native American is despised by everyone but the Native American grandmother he lives with - until he and Minna become friends. His grandmother, Aunt Nora, is so smart and so good at healing and yet is left so entirely out of the community because of the color of her skin. And Minna, of course, is just as cut out of the community, but for a different reason: she's so poor she can't afford a coat.
This is a really good example of how middle grade novels can still dig into deep topics and come up with some serious themes, without ever straying onto edgy territory. Minna's Patchwork Coat is a wonderful book for kids of any age, full of no more violence than the (unseen) death of Minna's convalescent father. It is somehow a gentle book, even as it depicts grief and racism and bullying and everything else Minna struggles with throughout the book - gentle, because it's honest without ever once beginning to relish its harsher themes. It comes across as a very honest book, portraying the true emotions and experiences of a little girl growing up in the Appalachians - one whose father dies, whose best friend is shunned by the rest of her society, and whose family is so poor she literally can't go to school because she doesn't have a warm coat for walking to school in the winter.
I think kids will appreciate the straight-forward depiction of Minna's reality, while still being enchanted by the stories behind the patchwork coat. I know I certainly would have loved Minna's Patchwork Coat at a younger age, because I would enjoy the mix of historical fiction (I always loved books that made me feel smart by teaching me something) and optimism. For at its core, despite the hard themes that run through it, Minna's Patchwork Coat is a story about an extremely optimistic girl who learns some sad truths but still does her part to draw her community together through the patchwork coat made from their most beloved memories.
Do I recommend it? Yes. I'm not going to say I think everyone should run out and buy it this instant, but I do think it's a good book. It's worth a read it it's handy, and it's definitely worth looking into if you know a kid who's into historical fiction.
Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from KidLitCon.
November 17, 2016
Mills, L. A. (2015). Minna's patchwork coat. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company
Summary: Minna is a seven year old girl living in cabin on the edge of town with her mama, papa, and younger brother Clemmie. Minna wants so badly to go to school, but doesn't have a coat to keep her warm. Her family doesn't have that much money and often times barters with neighbors or sells crops to get the things they need. After making a deal with Aunt Nora, a Cherokee woman, Minna begins to learn about plants and how they can be used for healing in exchange for teaching Lester, Aunt Nora's grandson, how to read and write. Eventually, Minna becomes very close with Aunt Nora and Lester, and after her papa dies, they help Minna and her family make it through the year. As the next school approaches, all of the woman who sew quilts with Minna mama agree to gather some scraps in order to make Minna a coat so she can go to school. Each scrap tells a story about the person it came from, many of which are Minna's classmates. When she first get to school, she has trouble making friends and is teased by many of the other kids. After many trials and tribulations, Minna is able to share her patchwork coat with her classmates who finally realize you should never judge a book by it's cover.
Questions:
1. What does Minna's papa mean when said," people only need people, and nothin' else."? How does this lesson come up throughout the story?
2. In the beginning of the story, Minna, her family, Aunt Nora and Lester do/did not go to school. Where do they learn everything about surviving, farming, reading, etc? Many families pass stories, information, and lessons down from generation to generation. Think of something you have learned from your family or elder. How is that similar to the way Minna and others in her community learn?
3. Why was the pinwheel quilt more than just a quilt? What did it symbolize for Minna's family?
4. What did the patchwork coat mean for Minna? What did it symbolize for Minna? *Think about how it is like the pinwheel quilt.
5. Think about the phrase, "never judge a book by it's cover." How does it tie into the story? *Think about all of the characters and how they were misjudged or how their background stories tell more about them then their actions toward Minna.
Summary: Minna is a seven year old girl living in cabin on the edge of town with her mama, papa, and younger brother Clemmie. Minna wants so badly to go to school, but doesn't have a coat to keep her warm. Her family doesn't have that much money and often times barters with neighbors or sells crops to get the things they need. After making a deal with Aunt Nora, a Cherokee woman, Minna begins to learn about plants and how they can be used for healing in exchange for teaching Lester, Aunt Nora's grandson, how to read and write. Eventually, Minna becomes very close with Aunt Nora and Lester, and after her papa dies, they help Minna and her family make it through the year. As the next school approaches, all of the woman who sew quilts with Minna mama agree to gather some scraps in order to make Minna a coat so she can go to school. Each scrap tells a story about the person it came from, many of which are Minna's classmates. When she first get to school, she has trouble making friends and is teased by many of the other kids. After many trials and tribulations, Minna is able to share her patchwork coat with her classmates who finally realize you should never judge a book by it's cover.
Questions:
1. What does Minna's papa mean when said," people only need people, and nothin' else."? How does this lesson come up throughout the story?
2. In the beginning of the story, Minna, her family, Aunt Nora and Lester do/did not go to school. Where do they learn everything about surviving, farming, reading, etc? Many families pass stories, information, and lessons down from generation to generation. Think of something you have learned from your family or elder. How is that similar to the way Minna and others in her community learn?
3. Why was the pinwheel quilt more than just a quilt? What did it symbolize for Minna's family?
4. What did the patchwork coat mean for Minna? What did it symbolize for Minna? *Think about how it is like the pinwheel quilt.
5. Think about the phrase, "never judge a book by it's cover." How does it tie into the story? *Think about all of the characters and how they were misjudged or how their background stories tell more about them then their actions toward Minna.
February 1, 2016
Minna’s Patchwork Coat is a richly textured Appalachian story with many layers and a charming narrative. The plot is engaging. Sadly Minna’s father passes, but his spirit and memories help ease her grief. In order to earn money for the family, her mama joins the Quilting Mothers to stitch beautiful quilts to sell in the larger cities. When the mothers work on a colorful pattern called Joseph’s Coat of Many Colors, Minna longs for such a beautiful coat so she can go to school. The mothers work tirelessly to create a quilted coat out of old fabric scraps. Minna picks the scraps which carry a story about many of the students at school who tease her. Hearing their mothers share their stories helps Minna get to know each one better, including the bullies. The coat is finally finished and she proudly wears it to school on “sharing day.” She is teased by the other children about her coat of rags, until they realize that those rags carry bits of their own history. A beautiful tale that teaches children about the bond of community and their connection to each other.
Read
February 18, 2017Illustrated by Lauren Mills. Boston: Little, Brown, Nov. 2015. This novel expands on Mills' 1991 picture book _The Rag Coat_, about a child whose family cannot afford a coat for her to wear to school at the beginning of the twentieth century. Her beloved father is sick with black lung disease and dies. The mothers in her community make Minna a coat made from rags that represent many memories and stories of their families, but Minna still struggles with teasing and self-doubt. The novel includes some Cherokee lore that Minna learns from the neighbor they call Aunt Nora (who is a healer and midwife), including a chapter called "Little Folk" with emphasis on the Cherokee Little People, and a friend named Lester, who is not allowed to attend school because of his mixed race. You can see more of Mills' beautiful illustrations for her novel on her Facebook pages and her web site.
December 9, 2015
A retelling of the picture book "The Rag Coat" by the same author. This book follows the same themes but includes more mature subjects. The original story addresses poverty, but the chapter book also discusses racism and the epidemic of black lung in Appalachia. It is a period book similar in style to the Little House series. It is well written but the characters are a little flat. I appreciated the cultural accuracy in the portrayal of the Cherokee midwife. At times it was cloyingly sweet and the moral ending was spoon fed to the reader. Overall though a good read for a beginner chapter book. Interesting, but safe.
March 15, 2016
This book is based on Dolly Parton's song, Coat of Many Colors, so most of us already know the setting and ending. What you also find in this novel, is the struggle to fit in, survive, and feel loved. Beautifully crafted; Mills develops the characters extraordinarily well. The storyline stirs your heart and makes one wish we could somehow magically step into the story to help. Great book to share with students on so many levels, from discussing the time period, issues of Appalachian regions, friendships, and more.
March 26, 2017
My daughter and I read the picture book version of this story, about 5 years ago. It had a beautiful message. She recently came across this chapter book story, by the same author, and shared it with me. Again, the messages it relays are quite inspiring. Even though it takes place many years ago, in the Appalachia mountains, I feel like the underlying themes it conveys ring true today as well.
November 29, 2023
This is full of SO many wonderful lessons! This would make a great read-a-loud to your children. I loved the children's picture book as a child called the Rag Coat.
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