
In a quiet New England valley, life unfurls through the simple rhythm of chores—cleaning a pasture spring, mending a stone wall, and watching a calf’s first steps. The language captures the season’s texture, from the crispness of spring thaw to the lingering chill of winter evenings, inviting listeners to feel the earth beneath their feet. As neighbors meet along the dividing line of their fields, the old adage “good fences make good neighbours” becomes a gentle meditation on boundaries and belonging.
The heart of the drama beats in the farmhouse, where Mary and Warren wrestle with the return of Silas, an aging hired man whose presence stirs questions of loyalty, pride, and the cost of caring for the vulnerable. Their conversations blend humor, frustration, and compassion, revealing how a community grapples with the weight of past promises and the hope of renewal. Listeners are drawn into a world where everyday labor carries the weight of larger truths about connection, responsibility, and the quiet resilience of rural life.
Language
en
Duration
~1 hours (95K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by David Reed, and David Widger
Release date
2002-01-01
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1874–1963
Best known for bringing New England landscapes and everyday speech into poetry, this American writer turned ordinary moments into lines that still feel memorable and alive. His poems often sound plain at first, then open into questions about choice, loneliness, work, and the way people live with one another.
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