The Coffin Quilt: The Feud between the Hatfields and the McCoys

By Ann Rinaldi

Book Overview

Fanny McCoy has lived in fear and anger ever since that day in 1878 when a dispute with the Hatfields over the ownership of a few pigs set her family on a path of hatred and revenge. From that day forward, along the ragged ridges of the West Virginia-Kentucky line, the Hatfields and the McCoys have operated not withing the law but within mountain codes of their own making. In 1882, when Fanny's sister Roseanna runs off with young Johnse Hatfield, the hatred between the two clans explodes. As the killings, abductions, raids, and heartbreak escalate bitterly and senselessly, Fanny, the sole voice of reason, realizes that she is powerless to stop the fighting and must learn to rise above the petty natures of her family and neighbors to find her own way out of the hatred.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0152164502
• ISBN13: 9780152164508
• Release Date: April 2001
• Publisher: Clarion Books
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 4.5" x 7.0"
• Age Range: 10 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 7

Customer Reviews

The Coffin Quilt The Feud between the Hatfields and McCoys

I read this book for a class assignment. I never read an Ann Rinaldi book before but now I am a big fan. I love historical fiction and I had heard of the Hatfield and McCoy feud but never knew if it was based on fact or fiction. Ms. Rinaldi tells the story from the voice of the youngest member of the McCoy family, Fanny. Through her a tale of family loyalty and betrayal. Fanny becomes caught in a tug-of-war of loyalty to her favorite sister Roseanna who runs off with a Hatfield. Fanny loves her sister but is placed in a position between her sister and her parents. Weaving throughout tale is the story of the start of the feud between the Hatfields and McCoys, many years earlier. But no one seems to be able mend the feud and we see the breakdown of a families. I loved this book. What else I liked was how the author then gives you the actual facts and history of the Hatfield and McCoy feud. This book is a wonderful read!

A Must Read Book

Roseanna McCoy never thought that there would be so much killing and hatred when she ran off with Johnse Hatfield. Everyone knew that there was a feud going on between the Hatfield's and the McCoy's, and Roseanna thought she would fix it be running off and trying to marry Johnse. The only one that knew this was Ro's little sister Fanny, and she wasn't telling anyone! ...it is still my favorite. The author is Ann Rinaldi, also my favorite author. This book holds such great suspense in many places. I think this was such a great book because of the way the author writes. "The first time I ever saw Yeller Thing is when Ro ran off". This is a quote from trustworthy little Fanny. Every time something bad was going to happen, she saw this creature that nobody else could see. It smelled worse than a skunk, had glowing eyes, and a piercing scream. He was something you couldn't explain. This first-person story takes placed in West Virginia in the 1880's. I would recommend this to anyone who likes historical-fiction that is a little different. If you go to the library and can't find a good book to read, pick up The Coffin Quilt. It is a good book that you can't put down, and you don't want to end. Remember; never judge a book by its cover!

One of the best books ever!

This was one of the best books I have ever read. It just kept on going and it never seemed to end. It's impossible find it boring, because every part is exciting. Other Ann Rinaldi books I found boring, like Finishing Becca. But you must read this one. You won't regret a minute!

amazing, as usual for rinaldi

this book was so incredible, just like all of rinaldi's books. SHe has an incredible talent, and i hope to be a writer someday. it's such a realistic book and instead of reading fake stuff, i like to read things that really truly happened. so, that's why I easily gave this book 5stars!

Another great book by Ann Rinaldi.

This is another great book by Ann Rinaldi. In telling the story of the Hatfield-McCoy feud, she uses the voice of Fanny McCoy, the youngest of the McCoy children, whose entire childhood was taken up by and destroyed by the feud. When she was born in 1873, tensions were already high, and renewed over a theft when Fanny was five. Two years later, when Fanny's favorite sister, Roseanna, has an affair with a Hatfield, tensions explode. Over the next ten years, Fanny loses numerous family members to the feud - a sister, several brothers, nearly her mother, who barely survives, Roseanna, who dies of grief - and she loses all chances of a happy and normal childhood as she alternatley mourns her family and fumes with anger. More than just a story of this famous feud, THE COFFIN QUILT was also a portrait of a young girl who tries to rise about the hatred and violence she is surrounded by as she grows up.