Molly's Craft Book: A Look at Crafts from the Past With Projects You Can Make Today

Bernstein, R.S. & Evert, J. (1994). Molly's Craft Book: A look at crafts from the past with projects you can make today. Middleton, WI: Pleasant Company Publications.

Summary:
Molly McIntyre is a fictional character from the American Girl book series. She was a young girl living in the 1940s during World War Two. This book discusses what was going on in America, especially for young people, and provides crafts that kids like Molly would have made at that time and are fun to make for today's young people as well. The history of the era is discussed through the crafts, such as paper, plastic, and metal shortages because of the war and projects young people created for soldiers away at war. The book provides simple craft projects which captures the spirit of that time, such as a patriotic pinwheel or miniature victory garden.

Review:
I enjoyed the history provided in the book more than the crafts themselves. But, the crafts are age appropriate and follow along the lines of possible crafts created during this time, which makes them interesting. An example of this is the felt photo holder, which is something Molly would have created in the 1940s and given to a soldier to carry with him on his voyage. I liked that any theme used in a particular craft is explained in the text, such as the Scottie dog bookmark and how Scottie dogs became popular due to Franklin D. Roosevelt's own, named Fala.

Genre:
nonfiction

Reading Level:
Ages 9 - 12

Similar Books:

Series:
This book is part of the American Girl Series, which contains novels of historical fiction, craft books, cookbooks, and more.

Subjects/Themes:
crafts, World War II, history

Annotation:
During World War II, children were urged to donate metal toys and do without paper, plastic, and new clothes and shoes. The simple crafts in this book reflect this resourceful time in American history.