Feather Crowns

By Bobbie Ann Mason

Book Overview

FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD

From prize-winning author Bobbie Ann Mason, a brilliantly wrought novel about the first woman to give birth to quintuplets in early 1900s America.

Set in the apocalyptic atmosphere of 1900--a time when many Americans were looking for signs foretelling the end of the world--Feather Crowns is the story of a young woman who unintentionally creates a national sensation. A farm wife living near the small town of Hopewell, Kentucky, Christianna Wheeler gives birth to the first recorded set of quintuplets in North America.

Christie is suddenly thrown into a swirling storm of public attention. Hundreds of strangers descend on her home, all wanting to see and touch the "miracle babies." The fate of the babies and the bizarre events that follow their births propel Christie and her husband far from home, on a journey that exposes them to the turbulent pageant of life at the beginning of the modern era.

Richly detailed and poignant, Feather Crowns focuses on one woman but opens out ultimately into the chronicle of a time and a people. Written in Bobbie Ann Mason's taut yet lyrical prose, the novel ranges from a peaceful farming community to a fire-and-brimstone revival camp, from traveling shows to the the nation's capital. Moving through the center of it all is Christie, a charming, headstrong, loving woman who struggles heroically to come to terms with the extraordinary events of her long life.

Feather Crowns is an American parable of profound resonance. Spellbindingly readable, it is a novel of classic stature that confirmed Bobbie Ann Mason as one of America's most important writers.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060925493
• ISBN13: 9780060925499
• Release Date: September 2020
• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Length: 480 Pages
• Weight: 0.81 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.4" x 8.1"

Customer Reviews

Feather Crowns

4-star quality writing. However the dialect (which is integral to the story)... as in "chillern" and "tobaccer" is a little tiresome. So although it is well-written and insightful, I suppose it's a matter of individual taste regarding the novel's rural and stick-poor roots.

Richly detailed portrait of America in 1900...

This novel will capture your heart; the dialogue, the characters and the setting take you back to the early 20th century in rural America. Christie Wheeler, mother of three, is pregnant again and believes she will birth a monster as punishment for having impure thoughts of another man. Instead, she has quintuplets, each with their own little personality and appearance. Tragedy strikes, though, and Christie and her husband, James, must learn to deal with the loss of their babies. Bobbie Ann Mason does a fantastic job of depicting family life, industry and the media in the early 1900s. I would also recommend Weeds by Edith Summers Kelley. -- Melissa Galyon

A wonderful reading experience.

"Feather Crowns" is a wonderful read for both it's story of Christianna Wheeler and her family and it's historic content. The book was both intruguing and entertaining as it painted a picture of life at the turn of the century and the hardships of trying to raise a family during that time. I strongly recommend this book if you enjoy reading southern genres and enjoy looking into the past.

Wonderful.

Feather Crowns is about motherhood and discovery -- actually motherhood as a vehicle for discovery. It is wonderful. In addition to its interesting and successfully presented theme, Feather Crowns demonstrates accurate dialect and dialogue. Christie sounds just like my grandmother of the same time and place. Bobbie Ann Mason understands the Southern female and the transformations we experience. I love her work.

Like time travel in its historical detail & accuracy

Feather Crowns is a memorable novel that made me feel I had been transported to the Kentucky of 1900. I highly recommend it as an accurate "slice of life" as well as the story of a remarkable woman. The subject matter, the birth of quintuplets, is both the central theme and yet could be any unusual event in an individual's life. The language used is what one would expect to hear from the characters of that time, much as Twain's language in Huck Finn. I congratulate Bobbie Ann Mason for an outstanding book