A Little Rebel

A late‑Victorian professor, accustomed to solitary study and untouched breakfasts, is thrust into chaos when a dying friend’s final letter lands on his desk, bequeathing a spirited seventeen‑year‑old daughter named Perpetua. The brief, urgent plea forces him to confront a world of balls, expectations, and financial worries that his scholarly life has never prepared him for.

What begins as polite bewilderment quickly spirals into comic anxiety, as the professor wrestles with the idea of caring for a lively young woman while fearing scandal, propriety, and his own aging appearance. The opening pages blend witty observation with heartfelt concern, inviting listeners to follow his reluctant, yet increasingly endearing, navigation of duty, love, and the unpredictable twists of a life suddenly full of “life and spirits.