A New England Nun and Other Stories [Hardcover]

Mary E. Wilkins Freeman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2004

From "A New England Nun": It was late in the afternoon, and the light was waning. There was a difference in the look of the tree shadows out in the yard. Somewhere in the distance cows were lowing and a little bell was tinkling; now and then a farm-wagon tilted by, and the dust flew; some blue-shirted laborers with shovels over their shoulders plodded past; little swarms of flies were dancing up and down before the peoples' faces in the soft air. There seemed to be a gentle stir arising over everything for the mere sake of subsidence -- a very premonition of rest and hush and night. This soft diurnal commotion was over Louisa Ellis also. She had been peacefully sewing at her sitting room window all the afternoon. Now she quilted her needle carefully into her work, which she folded precisely, and laid in a basket with her thimble and thread and scissors. Louisa Ellis could not remember that ever in her life she had mislaid one of these little feminine appurtenances, which had become, from long use and constant association, a very part of her personality. * This volume also includes "A Village Singer," "A Gala Dress," "The Twelfth Guest," "Sister Liddy," "Calla-Lilies and Hannah," "A Wayfaring Couple," "A Poetess," "Christmas Jenny," "A Pot of Gold," "The Scent of the Roses," "A Solitary," "A Gentle Ghost," "A Discovered Pearl," "A Village Lear," "Amanda and Love," "Up Primrose Hill," "A Stolen Christmas," "Life-Everlastin'," "An Innocent Gamester," "Louisa," "A Church Mouse," "A Kitchen Colonel," "The Revolt of 'Mother.'"

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mary E. Wilkins Freeman (1852-1930) was born in Randolph, Massachusetts and spent almost half a century in New England. She wrote prolifically throughout her career, publishing numerous stories, thirteen novels, children's books, a play, and poetry. In 1926 she won the Howells Medal for Fiction from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and later that year she was one of the first women elected to the membership of the National Institute of Arts and Letters.
Sandra A. Zagarell is Professor of English at Oberlin College. She is coeditor of the Penguin Classics edition of The Morgesons by Elizabeth Stoddard. --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 344 pages
• Publisher: Wildside Press (August 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0809567415
• ISBN-13: 978-0809567416
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,099,801 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book I return to over and over., October 28, 2008

By 

lark (Wisconsin) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A New England Nun and Other Stories (Paperback)

I'm a big fan of Mary Wikins Freeman. I have over the years collected all of her books of short stories...this is one is my favorites and I have read it over and over again. It is a little collection of stories about people who have found themselves alone..and what making peace with and surrendering to that state of being brings into their lives. The gentle simplicity of their world written by Ms Freeman in her beautiful style, draws you in and keeps you thinking about these characters long after the story is over. My copy of this book is a first edition, over 100 years old now and is so fragile I have to treat it with kid gloves.... so I am very happy to see a reprinting of these stories in paperback form so I can enjoy reading them over and over again for may more years to come.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Collection of Stories, February 5, 2008

By 

Gretje's mom (Livonia, MI) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A New England Nun and Other Stories (Paperback)

This is the best collection of stories I've read since Three Lives, by Gertrude Stein. Very moving, beautiful stories of 19th-century women.