Buy New

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
or
Amazon Prime Free Trial required. Sign up when you check out. Learn More
Buy Used
Used - Good See details
$2.54 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Feather Crowns
 
 
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Feather Crowns [Paperback]

Bobbie Ann Mason (Author)
3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)

List Price: $14.99
Price: $11.69 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
You Save: $3.30 (22%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.
Only 2 left in stock--order soon (more on the way).
Want it delivered Monday, January 30? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Hardcover $25.75  
Paperback, Bargain Price $6.00  
Paperback, June 3, 1994 $11.69  
Unknown Binding --  

Book Description

June 3, 1994
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. Thousands of strangers descend on her home, all wanting too see and touch the "miracle babies." One visitor crawls right in through the window! 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 seamy traveling shows to the hushed precincts of 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 destined to confirm Bobbie Ann Mason as one of America's most important writers.


Frequently Bought Together

Customers buy this book with The White Hotel $10.25

Feather Crowns + The White Hotel
  • This item: Feather Crowns

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The White Hotel

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details


Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought


Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A young Kentucky farm couple becomes a center of public attention after giving birth to quintuplets in Mason's acclaimed novel.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

YA-Early in the cold dark spring of 1900, when, according to apocalyptic prediction, the world is about to be destroyed by earthquake, a miracle occurs instead. In the backwoods of Kentucky, a farmwife gives birth to five healthy, well-formed babies-quintuplets, the first recorded in the U.S. From then on her life, and her family's, are never the same, as the world troops to her door to witness this grand spectacle. Or is it a freak show? This is a book about love, the journey of life, and the unsought miracles that transform human existence. Its voice and ambiance are authentic; appreciative readers will savor the lovely old words and the quaint ideas of another time, along with the unlovely, harsh practices of superstition, ignorance, and greed. Christie Wheeler's story is historical fiction at its warmest, fiercest, and most intimate. This moving novel will enrich any student's knowledge of American folklore, folklife, and social history.
Marya Andreen, R.E. Lee High School, Springfield, VA
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 464 pages
  • Publisher: Harper Perennial (June 3, 1994)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0060925493
  • ISBN-13: 978-0060925499
  • Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 1.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 13.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,615,637 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

 

Customer Reviews

13 Reviews
5 star:
 (5)
4 star:
 (3)
3 star:
 (2)
2 star:
 (2)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.7 out of 5 stars (13 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Like time travel in its historical detail & accuracy, November 29, 1996
By A Customer
This review is from: Feather Crowns (Paperback)
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
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars What would you do with five babies?, January 24, 1999
This review is from: Feather Crowns (Paperback)
A wonderful story of a family struggling with the overwhelming consequences that result from becoming parents of quintuplets at the turn-of-the-century. The births cause a nationwide sensation and send hundreds of strangers (sometimes by the trainload) into their simple home to witness the "miracles." The babies bring Christie and James much pride, and Christie even revels in the attention. But it is short-term. The story then turns to examine the effects of grief. Christie and James become distant with one another and their large, supportive family. They set out on a lecture tour. James' purpose in the tour is to raise money to pay debts; Christie's is to educate the public. The tour turns side-show in nature and, yet, serves to bring the couple to terms with their grief.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Y2K Hysteria 100 Years Early, August 24, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Feather Crowns (Paperback)
I read "Feather Crowns" a few years ago, and I recommend it to anyone who is absorbed in fears about the whole Y2K situation. I remember thinking when reading the book how sad it was that people were so ignorant and fearful of the arrival of a new century, and how the birth and death of these five babies held such excessive meaning to the people of Kentucky in 1900.

I tell people to read this book when they talk about storing away great amounts of food, fuel and cash for the coming of the millenium. I hope that we, too, are not looked upon in 100 years as ignorant and putting too much emphasis on the mere turning of a calendar page.

"Feather Crowns" was a good example of how fragile the human mind is when it comes to dealing with a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Common sense doesn't always win out over superstition and fear.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews











Only search this product's reviews



Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
CHRISTIANNA WHEELER, BIG AS A WASHTUB AND CONFINED TO BED all winter with the heaviness of her unusual pregnancy, heard the midnight train whistling up from Memphis. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
brassbound trunk, lady cake, feather crowns, black nipples, boiled custard, glass casket, cold slaw, opry house, tobacco patch, five babies, diaper cloths, box supper, dress tail, chess pie, sugar tit, snake woman
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Jimmie Lou, Little Bunch, John Wilburn, Emily Sue, James Lake, Brother Cornett, Aunt Sophie, Brother Jones, Mollie Lee, Uncle Wad, Colonel Happy, Mammy Dove, Minnie Sophia, Thomas Hunt, Mack Pritchard, Charley Lou Pickles, Fats Fortenberry, Granny Wilburn, Madame Dupuy, Hopewell Chronicle, Mary Ann, Wad Wheeler, Institute of Man, Maple Grove, Mississippi River
New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:



Books on Related Topics (learn more)

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Suggested Tags from Similar Products

 (What's this?)
Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product).
 

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 

Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   



So You'd Like to...



Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject

Search Books by subject:







i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...