Amelia E. Barr’s 1904 novel is set in old New York, among the respectable families and homes around Bowling Green. Through its characters and themes of love and social expectation, it paints a portrait of a bygone world. It is worth listening to for its warm picture of New York society and its customs.
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Cover of the original edition (Project Gutenberg, public domain).
Text source: gutenberg.org · The work is in the public domain.
Opening of the book
“THEY RESTED ON THE BENCHES, AND MADE LITTLE CONFIDENCES, AND WERE VERY HAPPY.” “THEY RESTED ON THE BENCHES, AND MADE LITTLE CONFIDENCES, AND WERE VERY HAPPY.” The Belle of Bowling Green By AMELIA E. BARR Author of “The Bow of Orange Ribbon;” “The Maid of Maiden Lane,” Etc. With Illustrations By WALTER H. EVERETT A. L. BURT COMPANY, PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK Copyright, 1904, BY Dodd, Mead & Company Published, October PRINTED IN NEW YORK, U. S. A.
To My Friend WARREN SNYDER A Bookman and a Lover of Books This Novel is Dedicated CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I Monday’s Daughters 3 II The Spring of Life 30 III A Sweetness More Desired than Spring 61 IV Introduces Mr. St. Ange 81 V A Chain of Causes 115 VI The Miracle of Love 149 VII The Incident of Marriage 194 VIII The Rose of Renunciation 226 IX The Reproof of the Sword 252 X The Star of Peace 296 XI Afterward 321 Prologue O shades of respectable Vans! O Livingstons, Kennedys, Jays! Lend me your names to conjure with, And bring back the fine old days— When the trade and wealth of the city Lay snugly the rivers between, And the homes of its merchant princes, Were built round the Bowling Green. Here’s to the homes that are past!
Readnara
