Happy book birthday to Shelley Wood‘s THE QUINTLAND SISTERS, publishing today with William Morrow in the US and HarperCollins in Canada!
This stunning debut novel is a tour de force of imagination, taking readers inside the devastating true story of the Dionne Quintuplets and through one of the most significant custody battles in history.
Pre-publication praise:
“this recounting of a blight on our history is as fascinating as it is informative”
-Sara Cation, Canadian Living
“Wood cleverly combines fact and fiction in a fast-paced novel that will leave readers contemplating how the best intentions of government intervention can have dire, unanticipated consequences.” -Publishers Weekly
“A charming and well-researched…tale of love and survival.” -Kirkus Reviews
“Whether or not you’re familiar with the story of the Dionne quintuplets, you’ll appreciate the meticulous attention to historical detail in this compelling reimagining of five famous lives, and find yourself immediately drawn into a world where fact and fiction are seamlessly blended and a beautiful, tragic mystery is unspooled. This gorgeously written novel about miracles, love and resilience is perfect for fans of Joanna Goodman.”
-Marissa Stapley, bestselling author of Mating for Life and Things to Do When It’s Raining
“The Quintland Sisters is an impeccably researched historical novel that will enthrall you. From the moment Shelly Wood introduced the remarkable Dionne quintuplets, I was utterly captivated. Wood’s vivid story-telling through the eyes of a young nursing assistant perfectly captures the astonishing birth and early days of the famous quintuplets’ lives. Wood has masterfully brought the Quints’ small Ontario farming community of the early 1930’s to life, as well as all the characters that come in and out of their surreal and extraordinary world. I could not get this story out of my head long after I finished reading it.” -Joanna Goodman, author of The Home for Unwanted Girls
“The Quintland Sisters is a stunning novel about five girls caught in the seam of history, at the intersection of dueling cultures, classes, languages, and faiths in the last years before World War Two. Through the eyes of the Dionne sisters’ longest-serving nurse, Wood tells the heartbreaking story of how the miraculous survival of five identical sisters born to a poor family in Quebec devolved into a naked battle for money and fame that corrupted even those who loved them. Meticulously researched and sensitively told, this book is a journey not to be missed.”
—Heather Young, author of The Lost Girls
“Before the fishbowl world of reality television and carefully curated social media accounts, there was Quintland. In The Quintland Sisters, Wood deftly captures the fascinating collisions between faith and science, powerful and poor, and the tensions that arise when a rural town and its inhabitants are cast under the relentless scrutiny of the public’s obsession with one extraordinary family. The story of the Dionne quintuplets serves as a timely reminder of the humanity we all share, no matter our differences in social class, religion, or nationality.”
—Elise Hooper, author of The Other Alcott and Learning to See