Every so often I pick up a new quilting book and all I can say is "Wow!" Sujata Shah has put together a book of 15 amazing quilts. The quilt designs in Cultural Fusion Quilts--A Melting Pot of Piecing Traditions are inspired by art, handcrafted items, textiles, and quilts from India, Africa, and the United States. The Pennsylvania countryside, where she currently lives, also gives her ideas for her quilts.

The designs are bright, colorful and have lots of movement. The blocks are purposely not perfect. She uses common quilt blocks and cuts slightly curved lines in place of straight lines. In several of the quilts, she makes a traditional block and then cuts it up to create something new.

The basic block for the quilt, "Zigzag Amish Impressions" on the lower half back cover of the book, is the Square in a Square Economy Block! That really surprised me! A lightning storm and Kuba cloth from Kenya were the inspiration for this quilt. On the page in the book facing this quilt she has a photo of her sons watching the electric storm and a picture of the fabric from Kenya.

Sujata Shah has included lots of photos of various works of art that relate to each quilt in the book. I really appreciate being able to see the tangible work of art next to the quilt based on that design. That's a brilliant feature of this book!

This book will appeal to a wide group of quilters: those looking for patterns based on ethnic designs, modern quilters who love blocks with asymmetry and anyone who loves bright, exciting quilts! Click the link above to see more photos of the quilts in the book. (If you click on the small quilts in the scroll under the book cover, they will open in a larger window).

I highly recommend this book! It's a wonderful addition to my library of books with quilt patterns.