Munro, Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage

Alice Munro
Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage
Published in 2001, Vintage Books

Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage
Two girls on the cusp of womanhood, Edith and Sabitha, bring out the worst tendencies of each other in a small town. They connive against the Sabitha's father's housekeeper, writing fake letters to Johanna from Sabitha's ne'er do well father. It is Edith who is the smart one, and though she is not kind, she can intuit the sad and lonely lives that Johanna and the father must live. In the end, Johanna does end up with the father and they have their own son. It's a long short story that combines the inner lives of several characters, burgeoning sexual curiosity of the girls, how small small town life can be, and more.