'Sally Day's heard from her beau,' Gene said, grinning. Sally Day took a candle and went up to her room to open the precious envelope.
Charles's writing was even and steady. There had been some fighting around Harper's Ferry, he said, but the men were full of hope that the war could not drag on much longer. He didn't say anything personal in the letter; there wasn't a single loving world, He signed himself, 'your friend, Charles Horne.'
Disappointment clouded Sally Day's face. Then she thought, 'Maybe he just doesn't know how to write a love letter. Maybe he can't let himself go and say what he wants to. Papa says Yankees are different from Southern folks.' Just how different, Sally Day Hammond soon finds out when the War Between the Sates ends and the two marry. Yankee Charles Horne brings his merry-hearted southern wife home to a Connecticut farm and to his undemonstrative family. Amidst the sober in-laws, tensions rise between the bride and groom. But Sally Day has mettle and Charles has determination; in the desperate honesty of this young couple's conflict, both young hearts may yet stretch and truly meld. Recommended for ages 10 and up.
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