What do you think?
Rate this book
Buffalo Coat
Originally published in 1944, Buffalo Coat spent several weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. The first adult novel written by acclaimed Idaho writer Carol Ryrie Brink, winner of the Newbery Award for the outstanding book of children's literature in 1936, Buffalo Coat has become a classic of Northwest literature. It tells the tale of three doctors who came to Opportunity (Moscow), Idaho, in the 1890s seeking success and fortune in the town with the promising name. At first all attained their private objectives and financial success, symbolized by owning a great buffalo coat to wear through the bitter winters. Then one by one, each of their lives ended in tragedy. Noted for her human insight and succinct storytelling, Brink's Buffalo Coat was perhaps her finest novel, the first in a trilogy about northern Idaho and eastern Washington that also includes Strangers in the Forest and Snow in the River.
421 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1944
4 people are currently reading
180 people want to read
About the author
Carol Ryrie Brink
54Ìýbooks173ÌýfollowersBorn Caroline Ryrie, American author of over 30 juvenile and adult books. Her novel Caddie Woodlawn won the 1936 Newbery Medal.
Brink was orphaned by age 8 and raised by her maternal grandmother, the model for Caddie Woodlawn. She started writing for her school newspapers and continued that in college. She attended the University of Idaho for three years before transferring to the University of California in 1917, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1918, the same year she married.
Anything Can Happen on the River, Brink's first novel, was published in 1934. She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Idaho in 1965. Brink Hall, which houses the UI English Department and faculty offices, is named in her honor. The children's section of the Moscow, ID Carnegie public library is also named after her.
Brink was orphaned by age 8 and raised by her maternal grandmother, the model for Caddie Woodlawn. She started writing for her school newspapers and continued that in college. She attended the University of Idaho for three years before transferring to the University of California in 1917, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1918, the same year she married.
Anything Can Happen on the River, Brink's first novel, was published in 1934. She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Idaho in 1965. Brink Hall, which houses the UI English Department and faculty offices, is named in her honor. The children's section of the Moscow, ID Carnegie public library is also named after her.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
June 16, 2023
It turns out that Carol Ryrie Brink, best known as the author of , also penned a handful of books for adults. This one was her first, and was a best seller when it was published in 1944. The novel is set in the late 1800s in the small town of Moscow, Idaho (called "Opportunity" in the book), where Brink, grew up, and which is the setting for some of her children's books. One of the main characters, a doctor who's a leading figure in the town, is based on her grandfather, a big man with a big personality who wears the titular buffalo coat. She draws on actual incidents that took place, to him and other people not related to her, weaving them together in a fictionalized version of events that had they been invented would've seemed overly melodramatic. I admired the craft of her storytelling, and her characterizations are really compelling, but while I was more or less engrossed, I somehow found the book heavy going. At some point, I took a break and read the Wikipedia entry for Brink, and the biographical details there made me realize where the book was going to go. Ironically, having that spoiler actually added some impetus to my reading, and I finished it much more quickly. Probably the modern University of Washington reprint edition tells about everything that happened in real life in the forward -- I'd be curious to know if it tells more about the real life Jenny, the Methodist Minister's daughter, than one learns online.
September 15, 2009
I was totally engrossed in this book, which is odd for me, considering the age and how thick it was. Also, it wasn't a tight plot -- there was a lot of meandering, but for some reason I could barely put it down. The characters were all believable and I liked many of them (but not Doc Hawkins). I really liked the description of frontier Idaho and how several prominent citizens took it from a rough town to some semblance of civilization. Also, the descriptions of the landscapes were amazing -- Carol Ryrie Brink really helped to make you feel that you were there.
Great story lines, great writing, great everything. Highly recommend.
Great story lines, great writing, great everything. Highly recommend.
February 9, 2009
I loved this book even more this time around. I think this is the third time I have read it, but I have learned more each time. This time I really keyed into the beautiful writing. I loved her description of the Idaho landscape and the mountains. She has a beautiful way with words. The ending surprised me, even though I have read it before and I like that. I read the forward again and enjoyed learning the history behind the story and the writer. This is a very mature book and I feel like I understood the themes better now than I have before.
September 14, 2009
Wow! CRB is one of my favorite authors for chidrens lit and this book is confirmation for me as to why I LOVE childrens literature. Such books are usually happy and uplifting, not too much tragedy. This book is a simpler version of Dostoevsky. Pain and suffering!! Maybe it is that I am 9 months pregnant and feeling emotional but man o man... life in the isolated settlement is harsh! A worthy read but a bit slow to start. At the end, I was sitting up and eagerly reading quickly to figure out just how it would end. I will read the sequels, just not right away!
January 10, 2011
This was a book club book and I had never heard of it before it was handed out to us. The author is from Moscow, Idaho and the book takes place there though the town's name is changed to Opportunity. I didn't really know what to expect, but I really got sucked into the story and finished it in only a few days. It was very simply and beautifully written and the story was very compelling. I'd say that if you liked books like These is My Words and Mrs. Mike, then you would probably like this as well.
February 5, 2011
The story is engaging, but made much more interesting because it is set in Moscow (renamed Opportunity) in the late 1800s. Made me want to learn more about Moscow's history and see pictures from that era.
November 11, 2023
This book was on my parents' bookshelves, and I thought I remembered reading it many years ago. But nothing about it stirred a memory. I liked how she developed her characters, but the end seemed sort of melodramatic in a way the rest of the book was not.
Read
January 12, 2019I loved this book at first and then it lapsed into melodrama. Compelling melodrama that kept me awake thinking about the sadness for so many of the main characters. I didn't read chunks of it.
I loved Caddie Woodlawn as a child and loved it again when I reread it recently. I loved Caddie Woodlawn's Family. I will read the introduction again and see how it all fits together with Brink's life in Moscow, Idaho.
----------So there really was a murder and an affair and a suicide. Maybe not just the way Brink fictionalized it but there were tragic events in that little town.
I loved Caddie Woodlawn as a child and loved it again when I reread it recently. I loved Caddie Woodlawn's Family. I will read the introduction again and see how it all fits together with Brink's life in Moscow, Idaho.
----------So there really was a murder and an affair and a suicide. Maybe not just the way Brink fictionalized it but there were tragic events in that little town.
September 21, 2019
I found this story absorbing, and was still mulling it over 24 hours after finishing it. Truth be told, it had a somewhat oppressive effect on my mind. It emphasized the constraints of temperament and circumstance, and how difficult-to-impossible it is to defeat our own "wiring."
The closest thing to transcendence in Carol Ryrie Brink's novel (which follows pretty closely events in her family history) are the impassive mountains overlooking the human drama playing out in the town of Opportunity, Iowa. Faith in God is portrayed as ineffective. I do like a little more redemptiveness in my novels, but there's no denying this was well told, and I sympathized with even the most abrasive and headstrong characters. Anna, the character based on the author's grandmother, shines brightest. This book reminded me of other novels I've read with a Western setting, such as Angle of Repose and My Antonia--a worthy addition to that list, I think.
The closest thing to transcendence in Carol Ryrie Brink's novel (which follows pretty closely events in her family history) are the impassive mountains overlooking the human drama playing out in the town of Opportunity, Iowa. Faith in God is portrayed as ineffective. I do like a little more redemptiveness in my novels, but there's no denying this was well told, and I sympathized with even the most abrasive and headstrong characters. Anna, the character based on the author's grandmother, shines brightest. This book reminded me of other novels I've read with a Western setting, such as Angle of Repose and My Antonia--a worthy addition to that list, I think.
March 4, 2024
There’s a reason why the famous Carol Ryrie Brink is known for Caddie Woodlawn and not this depressing and disturbing novel, Buffalo Coat. I am finished reading Brinks novels after this one that leaves a bad taste afterwards for any more.
Read
October 2, 2023Historical fiction about early times in Moscow, Idaho, in which the author's own grandparents are central characters.
October 4, 2023
This beautifully written tragic story is going to stick with me a long while. EBN23 Category: A book by an Idaho author.
January 9, 2024
I read this for book discussion tomorrow. I'm sure it is a good read but it just didn't hold my attention. Looking forward to the discussion to see what I missed.
November 3, 2024
Our 2nd book club read for 2024-25. I did not attend the discussion but provided my written comments. I'd recommend the book to others to read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 12, 2012
This was an absorbing book, and a page turner for me, and her characters came alive - perhaps in part because she based them on real people, like her grandmother. CRB can write! Her story concerns the early history of Moscow, Idaho (even though the town is called Opportunity in the book). So, what was my problem, and why didn't I like it? These people were people of despair, 'without hope and without God in the world.' Ultimately it was full of the worship of the creation: the mountains around Moscow, the pure, sharp air of the West, the seasons, the seemingly wild, cruel country just beginning to be civilized - typical of the first settlements). The story purported the idea that man's wickedness sprouted from this cruel Idaho wilderness, and that's where the murder, adultery, etc. comes from.....peace and happiness was to be found in the mountains that never change. I totally disagree with her philosophy; wickedness comes from within man, and man's only Savior is the CREATOR, not the creation. I was very disappointed - I kept hoping for regeneration and forgiveness, but that didn't happen. The minister of the Methodist church was a sentimental wimp, the doctor a proud and selfish man, and his wife a fatalist.
September 18, 2011
The author, Carol Ryrie Brink, took the stories her grandmother told her about Moscow, Idaho and her relatives and wove them into this engrossing book. Her grandparents are the source and main characters of this story which tells how and why three doctors came to Opportunity (Moscow), Idaho in the late 1800s looking for success and fortune. The title comes from the buffalo coats they wore as a sign of prestige. This is basically a picture of life in a small American town that moves from being part of the frontier to an emerging state of civilization. There are great descriptions of landscapes as well as depictions and human insight into the characters who inhabit this book. It is also a love story - one immature and one mature. One caution - there is not a warm fuzzy ending. I discovered this is book one in a trilogy and hope I can find the other two! P.S. Brink wrote the classic children's book Caddie Woodlawn.
September 10, 2012
The writing wins the day! The plot did not satisfy, but the characters and setting filled me up.
The opening chapter lassoed me. Young Jenny � in a snit, snubbed by her sister, misunderstood by her father � heads south from Moscow, ID, to San Francisco on foot. In a blizzard. The town doctor, returning from a call, sees Miss Jenny in the slanting sunlight and picks her up in his sleigh. She is so cold that he takes her coat off, puts her on his lap and wraps his buffalo coat around her. "Inside the buffalo coat there was a warm and reassuring smell of tobacco and human kindness." "Nothing that the Golden Gate had to offer could compare with this."
The warm characters are in a dark narrative, one based on the early days of Moscow. Violence, suicide, murder and adultery all have a place in this story. There is no happy ending.
Buffalo Coat reminded me of Willa Cather's books.
The opening chapter lassoed me. Young Jenny � in a snit, snubbed by her sister, misunderstood by her father � heads south from Moscow, ID, to San Francisco on foot. In a blizzard. The town doctor, returning from a call, sees Miss Jenny in the slanting sunlight and picks her up in his sleigh. She is so cold that he takes her coat off, puts her on his lap and wraps his buffalo coat around her. "Inside the buffalo coat there was a warm and reassuring smell of tobacco and human kindness." "Nothing that the Golden Gate had to offer could compare with this."
The warm characters are in a dark narrative, one based on the early days of Moscow. Violence, suicide, murder and adultery all have a place in this story. There is no happy ending.
Buffalo Coat reminded me of Willa Cather's books.
April 2, 2016
We read this for a Library History Book Club, and I have to say it's one of my favorite reads this year. The story revolves around three doctors in Opportunity, Idaho (actually, Moscow) in the late 1800s/early 1900s, and the three women who figure prominently in their lives. Brink is really honest in her portrayal of each of the characters, and they are all, for the most part, quite three-dimensional. The description of the town and its inhabitants doesn't shy away from the grit and grime of frontier life - the sly (and not so sly) bigotry, the drinking, the independent attitudes, the violence. Instead, she slowly develops a quiet, but searing story that ends with some optimism, if not a happy ending.
June 18, 2013
It is so fun to get engrossed in a great story made more fascinating by its historical nature. I found myself wanting to walk downtown and see the buildings as they must have looked then, wishing there was a "Buffalo Coat" historical tour! Everyone in Moscow, Idaho should read this book - I will enjoy looking at our mountains so much more thinking of the way Carol Ryrie Brink describes them throughout the story, through the eyes of different characters. Loved the colorful personalities, darkness and scandal included - nothing makes history come alive like identifying with interesting characters from the past.
June 1, 2008
While I have read every single one of CRB's children's books, this was her first adult novel that I read. The characters and the writing were absolutely amazing, and the plot drew me in so much that I spent a lot of time reading this book instead of studying. The one downside was that the plot, which was comparing an immature love affair with a mature one, wasn't exactly my cup of tea. And since most of the time, I read to escape reality, a book that ends like this one did makes me a little depressed. Amazing writing, though.
January 24, 2015
This is not Caddie Woodlawn! It is an adult novel with adult themes. While I do not agree with the worldviews and solutions of some of the characters, this was a very good book after a bit of a sluggish build up. It is set in pioneer Idaho and the founding of a town - Opportunity. The book follows the three doctors in town, two doctor's wives and a young woman who grows up during the course of the book. It is about small towns, marriage, longing for things you shouldn't have and the consequences of one's choices. I couldn't sleep after I finished it.
April 11, 2008
Another top ten pick for me. I really love the idea of settling the west, back in the day when it was still wild. Have a great appreciation for and love of the "pioneer spirit". The book totally had that and so much more. REAL people with real struggles and temptations and I'll bet we all have a Doc Hawkins in our lives somewhere-loveable, flawed, big-dreamer people. Love his wife too.
April 11, 2008
This is one of those rare books that years later I still remember snippets from, and stop to think, "You know, I really liked that book." Bro. Samuelson had us read it in English class, so I did the assignment, and forgot about it. But, like I said, every once in a while, something will come back to me from the book. I still think about.
April 6, 2010
This book was on the New York Times Best Seller list of novels in 1944. It is still a quintessential novel. It is well -written with a strong plot and compelling characters. Also, it is based on the history of Moscow, Idaho when the 19th Century was turning to the 20th Century. I would recommend it to novel readers everywhere.
January 21, 2013
It's been a few months since I've been so completely absorbed by a book. Some of the events may seem sensational but truth is stranger than fiction and in this case the story is true. Brink's writing seems fresh though it was written almost seventy years ago.
May 13, 2015
I got this very old book from a garage sale across the street. It was a charming and yet tragic story of a small town in Idaho when the west was settled. Mrs. Brink also wrote children's literature and won the Newberry Award in 1935 for her book "Caddie Woodlawn."
June 30, 2007
This is an uneven read, but I couldn't put it down.
July 27, 2008
This book is great. Although, you get really involved with all the characters, and then they die.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 20, 2008
Love, love, love this book! I re-read it every year at least..... if not more.
February 24, 2009
This book was very well written. It is the story of early Moscow, Idaho and the people who lived there but is written in novel form. It has a sad ending but otherwise a great book.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.