Phyllis

Elmore

Author & Speaker

Veteran & Genealogist

Travels from: Orlando, FL

“A testament to her grandmother and the women who made an impact on her childhood, Elmore’s text is an ideal choice for readers interested in memoir and history, plus stories about Black women, feminism, and quilting.” — Library Journal

Phyllis Biffle Elmore was raised by her grandmother Lula Horn (1883-1988), in rural Alabama during the mid 1950’s and 1960’s. Her book Quilt of Souls: A Memoir, is dedicated to the memory of her grandmother; a quilter and storyteller who only made quilts from the clothing of people who had passed on. Her quilts were called “quilts of souls.” Each piece of clothing told the story of how that person lived and died. Quilt of Souls: A Memoir is now available on audiobook from various outlets.

Phyllis has spoken in over 100 venues throughout the United States. Ms. Elmore is also a 20-year Air Force and Army veteran and received her Master’s Certificate in Creative Writing from the University of Denver. She currently lives in Orlando, Florida.

Phyllis's Featured Titles

Quilt of Souls: A Memoir

Imagine |

November 8, 2022

Memoir

The Yellow House meets Hidden in Plain View in this multigenerational memoir that celebrates African American quilting, family, and honoring the past.

At age four, Phyllis Biffle Elmore was plucked off her front porch in Detroit and dropped on her grandmother Lula Horn’s doorstep in rural Alabama. Phyllis felt utterly abandoned until Grandma Lula showed her both all-encompassing love and her intricate “Quilts of Souls.” Phyllis listened intently as Lula told epic stories of folks who had passed on as she turned their clothing into breathtaking quilts for their families.

Grandma Lula’s generosity of spirit, strong will, and creative soul animate every page and through the quilts, she paints portraits of extraordinary Black women born before and after the Civil War. They are enslaved people, laundresses, storytellers, healers, and quilters whose stories have gone untold until now.

Beautifully written and brilliantly told, Phyllis weaves back and forth through time, piecing together true tales of racism, sexism, and colorism, but also strength and pride, creating a multigenerational patchwork honoring her family and ancestors. From the lush visuals to the powerful history, Quilt of Souls is oral tradition written and preserved for posterity.

BIPOC Representation, Black Voices, Memoir & Personal Journeys

The Untold Stories of African American Women Born After Reconstruction

Stories of women of the rural south whose stories were never told. Unheralded African American women who were storytellers, butter churners, laundresses and quilters. These women should have a special place in history as they often raised their children’s children who were left by their parents who headed north as part of the Great Black Migration.

Quilt of Souls

I was raised by my grandmother Lula Horn (1883 – 1988) who made quilts from the clothing of people who’d passed on. Her quilts told the story of how that person lived and died. These quilts were memorial quilts that was handed to the deceased family member which they kept for posterity. As a child, I would watch and listen to her stories for some of these pieces of clothing oftentimes were from people who lived during and after the Civil War.

Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories

“Phyllis Biffle Elmore is an amazing, generous human being who leaves her audience better than when they came. Traveling with pieces of her own family history, she picks up the audience and carries them on a journey through her life, weaving in the stories of her grandmother & other strong women throughout their time. Her Quilt of Souls presentation is both personal and powerful. Our community was moved by her story, and it was such a gift to experience the quilt & her shared pieces of history together.” — Warren County Public Library, 2025

“Like the women of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, who create masterpieces from cast-off fabrics, Phyllis Biffle-Elmore in Quilt of Souls: A Memoir uses snippets of history and fragments of memories to craft a narrative that is a powerful and poignant read.” — Jessica B. Harris, New York Times Bestselling author of High on the Hog

“A fascinating read that unravels exactly how us storytellers are born and made with the goal and purpose of retelling family history, culture, loves, losses, victories and tragedies of memorable people from the cradle to the grave. So, you take a young, scared city girl from Detroit, Michigan, and you drive her down to the country of Alabama farmland to be raised for nine years by her maternal grandmother, who sews historical and emotional quilts for the people of her Sumter County community to remember those who have passed on, not with just pictures and memories, but with their favorite clothes stitched together with the history and garments of others.” — Omar Tyree, New York Times Bestselling Author and NAACP Image Award Winner

“Quilt of Souls reminds me of Maya Angelou’s, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. The moving tales of hardship, kindness and the unconditional love of family and neighbor can’t help but touch the reader’s heart in Biffle-Elmore’s memories of life with her extraordinary grandmother. I can’t wait to recommend Quilt of Souls to my own book club.” — Diane Chamberlain, New York Times Bestselling author of The Silent Sister and The Last House on the Street

“Elmore’s memoir of a childhood interrupted is profoundly moving, shedding light on a quintessentially American experience that is often overlooked. Sent from Detroit in the 1950s to live with her Grandma Lula Horn in rural Alabama, the little girl is nourished by the stories of family members who endeavored to survive the brutalities of the Jim Crow era. In the process of teaching her granddaughter how to honor the lives of their kith and kin in the patchwork quilts she crafts, Lula stitches Phyllistene’s shattered spirit back together and helps her to forge an identity shaped by the redemptive power of forgiveness.” — Susan Rivers, Award-winning author of The Second Mrs. Hockaday

Mocha Girls Read Link

Quilters Guild of the Southern Crescent Link

Additional videos link

Honors, Awards & Recognition

Amazon Number 1 Best Seller new book release African American History (December 2022)
Amazon Best Seller African American History 2023
Amazon Best Seller Quilts & Quilting Books 2023
Library Journal Best Book of 2022
Six pages of Quilt of Souls was selected by the Texas School system to be included in their STAAR standardized testing