Or Give Me Death

Blurb

Or Give Me Death is a 2003 work of historical fiction by Ann Rinaldi based on the possibility that the famous words of Patrick Henry "Give me Liberty or Give me death" may have been first spoken by his dying, mentally ill wife, whom he kept locked up in a cellar to prevent her from hurting anyone. The story is told through the eyes of his daughter, Patsy Henry. It is also told by his younger daughter, Anne Henry. Patrick Henry travels the American colonies, advocating independence from England.
As the mother of a large family and wife of Patrick Henry succumbs to a genetic mental disorder, she is removed to a cellar prison in her own house, where she shows the power to predict future outcomes. Her family is left to cope with her absence, even as they are threatened to be torn apart by the knowledge that their middle child may have inherited their mother's disease.