Opportunities

A hurried breakfast brings Matilda and her sister Maria into conflict with the rules of Aunt Candy's household. Matilda has just been baptized, and her aunt treats that step as a reason to demand new responsibilities. On an errand through the village, Matilda meets Lem Dow and offers him sweets if he will attend Sunday school. Susan Warner builds this novel for young readers from such small encounters, connecting family life with the practical demands of Christian belief.

Those demands become harder when Matilda's aunt restricts her visits and interrupts plans to help a poor neighbour. Matilda and Norton Laval had hoped to supply Mrs. Eldridge with household necessities. In a conversation with Mr. Richmond, Matilda admits how deeply she resents her aunt. Domestic arguments, charitable intentions and questions about forgiveness give the story its focus. Readers interested in religious childhood fiction will find a close account of how a girl's wish to do good meets adult authority and difficult feelings.