PATCHES Robert More Toronto, Playwrights Canada Press, 1991. 55pp, paper, $9.95 ISBN 0-88754-502-5. C1P Grades 10 and up/Ages 15 and up Reviewed by Gina Varty Volume 20 Number 3 1992 May This one-act, two-character play by Robert More showcases the playwright's ability as a master puppeteer, for he has breathed life into two vividly Grafted female characters. The title, according to the author's foreword, refers to the beauty and intricacy of making a patchwork quilt, which symbolizes the need fundamental to all of us to "patch" together the many pieces of reality into a personal pattern that gives new meaning to old traditions and tells us of our place in the scheme of things and allows us to make sense of our lives. The result is a marvelously crafted work that evokes a deep emotional response. From the early threads of the play where the characters are introduced through the central weaving of the stories of their lives to the last few stitches of the play, where the women have gained strength to face the future, one is moved from laughter to tears. What starts as a chance meeting between Margaret, a fourth-generation Scottish Canadian, and Katerina, a first-generation Ukrainian Canadian, evolves into something we all long for, a nurturing friendship based on common interests, forgiveness, sharing and caring that deepens through personal crisis. A line from the play sums it up best. Margaret has just shown her quilts to Katerina, and she knows they are going to be friends and work side by side, because "she didn't just look at them, she 'saw' them, 'saw' into them," just as we see into the lives of two remarkable women. Highly recommended. Gina Varty, Edmonton, Alta.