A small grudge plays a big role in Iowa farm novel

Michelle Hoover
Michelle Hoover's novel "The Quickening" is based on an incident in a journal entry left by her great-grandmother.
MPR photo/Euan Kerr

A small grudge that grows out of proportion is at the heart of Michelle Hoover's new novel. "The Quickening" revolves around two Depression-era Iowa farmwives Mary and Enidina.

Enidina is based on Hoover's great grandmother who left a crudely typed journal about life on just such a farm with her husband Frank.

Hoover told Euan Kerr "The Quickening" was inspired by a journal entry describing a disagreement over what to feed Frank when he was very ill. In the book, the disagreement drives a wedge between Enidina and Mary that lasts for decades, and eventually threatens their whole way of life.

Michelle Hoover will read from "The Quickening" at 7pm this evening at the Bookshelf in Winona.