Summary

In “Esther,” while working at the bookshop, Esther cursed Ruth for ruining the Salvations. Although hopeful that Mr. Franklin would take her and Chloe as a duo, she worried “she couldn’t hold a candle to Ruth” (126). When Horace came in, they talked. Mr. Belmont’s arrival interrupted their conversation. He he wanted to buy the bookshop. Horace was reluctant to let it go because it was a family business. However, Belmont was offering “more money” than he had “ever seen at one time” (129). Esther urged him not to let it go.

Esther and Horace decided to write a piece in their newsletter encouraging the Fillmore residents “to consider their legacy over short-term reward” (130). They feared other businesses and homeowners would give up their properties to the city. The project brought the friends closer, but Esther “was embarrassed” by this intimacy (133). That...