By Ann Rinaldi
A note on the back of The Coffin Quilt reads: "WARNING: This is a historical novel. Read at your own risk. The writer feels it necessary to alert you to the fact that you might enjoy it." This note contains one little mistake. Rather than saying, "...you might enjoy it," the warning should read, "...you will enjoy it." Ann Rinaldi's The Coffin Quilt, like all of her books, mixes fact and fiction in a way that will entertain and educate every reader.
On Election Day of 1880, Roseanna McCoy runs off with Johnse Hatfield. The two plan to marry even though their families are old enemies. Not surprisingly, both the Hatfields and the McCoys disapprove of the marriage. They express their disapproval by renewing their old and bloody feud. The story of their fighting is told by young Fanny McCoy, who is forced to grow up too soon when her family starts to break apart. From the beginning of the killing in 1880 to the day it inexplicably ends in 1889, Fanny watches her brothers, sisters, and cousins die as they try to save the McCoy family. Fanny knows about each catastrophe before it occurs, thanks to the warnings of Yeller Thing (a cat-like creature who appears before each life-changing event). But Fanny is powerless, at her young age, to stop the destruction around her. All she can do is watch, and by the time she has the power to end her family's troubles, there isn't much left for her to do.
The Hatfield-McCoy feud was a fascinating historical conflict that makes for equally-intriguing historical fiction. Like all of Ann Rinaldi's books, The Coffin Quilt is a well-told story that will capture your interest from the first page to the last. Developed characters and fluid writing move the book along, but it is the history behind those characters that give the book its strong plot and quick pace. Yes, as the back cover warns, The Coffin Quilt is historical fiction -- but it's historical fiction that's definitely worth a read. Read it at your own risk. It may blow you over when you find that you enjoy it -- but don't say I didn't warn you.
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Visit these sites for some historical background on the Hatfield-McCoy conflict:
The Hatfield-McCoy Feud
Hatfield-McCoy Millennium Reunion
Hatfield-McCoy Reunion (from About.com)
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