Elsie at Home

On a stormy March evening, an exhausted woman reaches Fairview and discovers a home ready to receive her. Laura's arrival brings a tearful reunion with her daughter Evelyn, whose concern turns quickly to nursing, food and a comfortable room. Grandma Elsie and the Leland family help make the visitor welcome, while the children watch the unfamiliar guest with sympathy and curiosity.

Martha Finley's children's novel follows a large family through the practical work of caring for relatives and the pleasures of shared company. Later scenes move among wedding prospects, shopping, visits and a picnic with rowing and fishing. Lucilla's outing with Chester takes place under the expectations of her father, and an evening service gives daily life an explicitly Christian rhythm. Readers interested in older family fiction will find careful attention to manners, affection between generations and the small arrangements that keep a household running.