Abby J. Olson is living a secret life. At age eight, something has happened that she doesn't want the kids at her school to know - she lives in a homeless shelter with her brother and her mom. Abby is mad and confused, so she decides to write down the story of her life.

A Quilt and A Home is a gentle story of an eight year olds perspective of parental separation, poverty and homelessness. The metaphor of quilting is woven throughout the book as Abby begins her story watching her mom work on a quilt. When things fall apart in their lives, "putting the pieces together" in order to get her family back to wholeness becomes her desire. Despite Abby's own feelings of uncertainty and anger, she begins to admire her mom for having the courage to navigate the difficult, sometimes tedious, and necessary steps to rebuild their life. This book explores decision making, asking for help, coping with feelings when life seems out of control, and coming to a place of hope for a future that is within reach.

Recent estimates are that one in 50 children (about 1.5 million) are part of a family that is homeless in the U.S. each year. They may be staying in shelters, in family cars, on couches of friends or relatives, or on the street. Children who do not have stable homes are especially vulnerable - often experiencing hunger, chronic health problems and lack of access to care. A quarter or more of homeless children witness violence, and more than half experience problems with depression or anxiety (see www.childtrendsdatabank.org for more information.).



About the author

Pam Wessel-Estes holds BA and MA degrees in psychology, and has worked in social services and public health for more than 30 years. Early in her career she co-founded a domestic violence and sexual assault advocacy center and later led an organization which hosted an emergency shelter for families. The germ of this story grew out of her non-profit work as well as her own childhood experiences. Pam was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest where she still lives with her mountain-climbing husband and two very old cats. She enjoys playing with small pieces of cloth, knitting, weaving, writing poetry, and cooking for the perpetually hungry, smart and delightful young adults in her life.



About the illustrator

Cathy Clark is a teacher by training, but her love and passion is hiking and enjoying nature in the Pacific Northwest. She is an artist and photographer who generally prefers animals to people, including drawing and painting them. She only illustrated this book full of people as a favor to her friend Pam, and swears the next book she illustrates will be an encyclopedia of salamanders.