Part 1 Chapter 1 Summary

Willa Cather opens her book with a vivid word picture of the small town of Hanover, Nebraska, "trying not to be blown away" in a hard January snowstorm. The town is unusually quiet in the middle of the day: children are at school, there are no trains until evening, streets are empty except for a little five-year-old boy named Emil. The author draws a clear contrast between the town people and the farm people, who are only in town on business and lead their lives closer to the land.

Emil is crying because a dog chased his kitten up a telegraph pole. He is afraid the kitten will freeze to death. His older sister, Alexandra, returns from the doctor's office and scolds Emil for insisting that the kitten come to town with them in the first place. Alexandra is dressed in...