Sitting in the hair salon waiting for my color to set, I started reading SISTER CARRIE, set in Chicago 1889, 18 years after the Great Fire of Chicago. The place is being transformed and a young girl, of 18 is heading to the big city, much like Dreiser does in real life. According to the time line entitled The World of Theodore Dreiser and Sister Carrie, in this 2005 edition published by Barnes and Nobles, page x, SISTER CARRIE is based on Dreiser's sister Emma.
I managed to get to chapter 3 while waiting for my hair to do what my hair was supposed to do, 17 pages, small type. I really like this book, so far, as it shows what Chicago looked like at that time. It also is remarkable to me that a young girl, or let me say inexperienced girl is allowed to travel by herself, during the 1800's. I thought she would have been chaperoned, so maybe this is also a turning point in culture. I have been to Chicago numerous times and love being on the Magnificent Mile, so it will be fun to see what our girl Caroline will see and experience. She has already met, a possible rogue on the train. She is basing her judgement on trusting him, on the fact that he is wearing nice clothes. In the book MADAME BOVARY, we have a similar trusting of men, based on their clothes and positions in life. So I guess naivety abounds in the 1800's for young woman.
I cannot promise when I will be finished, there are 445 pages and 47 chapters, so I am trying to break it down in chapters/day. It seems like a pretty fast read, so I am hoping I can get in at least three chapters each day, with more on the weekends. If that is the case then I will be done by the end of April.
Also, thanks to all my readers, I appreciate the support.
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