Author Reading: Phyllis Biffle Elmore, Quilt of Souls

Name: Author Reading: Phyllis Biffle Elmore, Quilt of Souls
Start: 2026-02-17T18:00:00-06:00
Location: Hoover Public Library, Hoover, Alabama

Schedule

Tue, 17 Feb, 2026 at 06:00 pm

UTC-06:00

Location

Hoover Public Library, Hoover, Alabama | Hoover, AL

Author Phyllis Biffle Elmore comes to the Hoover Public Library to share her extraordinary memoir, Quilt of Souls.
This free event, moderated by Burgin Mathews, director of the Southern Music Research Center, will also feature a display of works by The March Quilts, a community quilting project engaging themes of human rights.
This is the first of three events centered on Elmore's upcoming visit to Birmingham. Other events include a quilt-and-story sharing circle (2/18, 10 AM, at the United Community Center / Riley Center) and a discussion of Sumter County, Alabama's historic Black singing traditions (2/18, 6 PM, at the High Dive Lounge.) Find out more at southernmusicresearch.org/events.
About the book: At age four, Phyllis Biffle Elmore was brought from her home in Detroit to the tiny town of Livingston, Alabama, to be raised by her grandmother, Lula Horn. Lonely and confused, she felt utterly abandoned until Grandma Lula enveloped her in all-encompassing love and a beautiful quilt. Phyllis listened intently to Lula’s epic stories of folks who had passed on and watched as her grandmother turned their clothing into breathtaking “quilts of souls” for their families.
Grandma Lula’s generosity of spirit, strong will, and creative soul animate every page of this marvelous memoir, which, like her quilts, paints portraits of extraordinary black women born before and after the Civil War—enslaved people, laundresses, storytellers, healers, and quilters whose stories have gone untold until now. Weaving back and forth in time, Phyllis stitches together true tales of racism, sexism, and colorism, but also strength and pride, creating a multigenerational patchwork honoring her family and ancestors. With significant history and mesmerizing storytelling, Quilt of Souls transforms oral tradition into a beautifully written document, powerfully presented and preserved for posterity.