Pulitzer Prize Fiction Winner

The Able McLaughlins

by Margaret Wilson

Summary

Set in a Scottish pioneer community in Iowa, the story follows the return of a Civil War veteran and his efforts to protect his family. It explores the moral dilemmas and hardships faced by early American settlers.

Historical Context & Significance

A "pioneer" novel that beat out better-known works of the time; it was praised for its authentic dialect and its depiction of the moral cost of settlement.