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Ethan Frome

3.27 of 5 stars 3.27 · rating details · 43,592 ratings · 2,477 reviews

If you know Starkfield, Massachusetts, you know the post-office. If you know the post-office you must have seen Ethan Frome drive up to it, drop the reins on his hollow-backed bay and drag himself across the brick pavement to the white colonnade: and you must have asked who he was.

ebook, 144 pages

Published December 3rd 2010 by Pubone.Info (first published 1911)

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Dec 05, 2011 karen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: littry-fiction

spoilers?? what spoilers??

i have changed my stance on the cover. a) initially, i thought that it was showing an altogether different type of activity, and then b) when ariel called it a spoiler, i reinterpreted it to something else and was still wrong, and then c) everything that may potentially be spoiled is pretty much spelled out in the first ten pages. so is that a spoiler, or is that foreshadowing??

tomato, potato...

what is so excellent about this book is that it is not at all a depressing...more

57 likes · like · see review

Oct 30, 2012 Shovelmonkey1 rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: for people who've got a little winters chill in their hearts

Recommended to Shovelmonkey1 by: 1001 books list

Shelves: 1001-books, bookcrossing-books, read-in-2012

I have been on a bit of a four-star roll recently and am beginning to fear that I accidentally pressed against my generous ratings button when I was slumped against the bookcase last week trying to figure out what to read next. It's cold and dreary outside and I was seeking something warm and fuzzy, maybe a bit light hearted or some sort of serial fantasy to see me through the onset of the winter months.... and then my hand brushed by the spine of Ethan Frome...

Which is clearly none of the thing...more

34 likes · like · see review

Aug 09, 2012 Jacob rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012-part-2, fiction-and-literature, west-and-wharton

August 2012

(view spoiler)

Good news, everyone!

Or rather, good news, everyone who had to read Ethan Frome in high school or college and developed a fanatical hatred of Edith Wharton and all her works...more

12 likes · like · see review

Apr 24, 2009 dead letter office rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a romantic tragedy that culminates in a sledding accident. I will just say a few brief words about that. First, there is probably a reason that sledding accidents don't figure more prominently in tragedies. Shakespeare wrote like 13 tragedies and to the best of my knowledge none featured a sledding accident (I have not read Titus Andronicus, so I can't be sure). If Shakespeare doesn't need to include a sled wreck, then neither do you.

I will also say that I found Ethan and Mattie's attemp...more

59 likes · like · see review

Jan 25, 2011 Joel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, 52-in-2010, classics, kindle, hide-your-razorblades

If you told me this was a longish deleted segment of Winesburg, Ohio, I would totally believe you, even taking into account the fact that one of the books was written by Sherwood Anderson and the other by Edith Wharton. Like the stories in that much revered short story cycle (no not novel), Ethan Frome concerns itself with grim characters burdened by unfulfilled dreams, dreams unfulfilled because of the strictures of society or their own inability to truly sieze the day. A chilly atmosphere, a g...more

20 likes · like · see review

May 23, 2007 Lindsey rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book is a good one to read if you live with someone who has also read it. This way, any time there is a lull in the conversation you can talk about how depressing it is. Conversations between me and my roommate often go something like this:

"You know what I was just thinking about? Ethan Frome."
"GOD. That book is so depressing."
"I know, right."

The book is not only enjoyable, but also a great conversation piece. Do not read it if you cannot stand unhappy endings.

30 likes · like · see review

Aug 30, 2007 George rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: drivers who don't use turn signals, people who talk out loud in a movie theater during the film

"Hey Mrs. Kinetta, are you still inflicting all that horrible Ethan Frome damage on your students?" - John Cusack, Grosse Pointe Blank

If you're looking for a book with an ever-increasing level of misery, this one is hard to beat. Try this test the next time you're with a group of your friends: just mention "Ethan Frome" out loud, and see how many of them groan audibly.

41 likes · like · see review

Feb 16, 2012 Susie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiftyfiftyme, 1001-books-list

Finally, I have the right word for this predicament: When a capable author uses her prowess to create a work whose sole purpose seems to be to depress the reader, it can be described as Frome. This word can also be used as a verb, noun, adjective (Frome-ish, Frome-ier, etc), adverb (Frome-ly), etc. to similarly describe the effect it has on the reader, (ie, "I was Fromed.")

An example used in a sentence may be: "John Steinbeck was clearly suffering from a touch of the Frome when he penned The Pe ...more

18 likes · like · see review

Sep 09, 2008 Johnny rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Johnny by: William Chu

Shelves: literature

Ever read a book as required reading (in high school or college) and then, rediscover it as an adult? Ethan Frome had receded to the dark recesses of my mind such that I had even forgotten that I had read it. I remembered reading Age of Innocence, but good old Ethan had left my mental building. When my youngest son left his retired textbook edition at my house (an old Scribner’s edition in trade paperback priced at $1.25 original price—oh for those days again!), I grudgingly put it on one of my...more Ever read a book as required reading (in high school or college) and then, rediscover it as an adult? Ethan Frome had receded to the dark recesses of my mind such that I had even forgotten that I had read it. I remembered reading Age of Innocence, but good old Ethan had left my mental building. When my youngest son left his retired textbook edition at my house (an old Scribner’s edition in trade paperback priced at $1.25 original price—oh for those days again!), I grudgingly put it on one of my shelves of literature and told myself that I needed to read it someday. It wasn’t until I reread the book this week (thinking it was my first reading, but anticipating the events far too clearly as I turned each page) that I realized I had read it before and, for some reason, its powerful story had not stayed in my accessible conscious (I’m sure Jung could have explained it and, unfortunately, I can do so, as well.)

What makes a novel, “literature?” Is it the intricate precision of the prose interwoven with delicate artistic touches? If so, Ethan Frome doesn’t meet the criterion. Rather than clever metaphors and similes that sing from the page, there is a plodding, methodical stacking of word upon word that rivals the quiet, mysterious nature of the protagonist himself. Perhaps, the art is in making the rhythm of the story match the theme and characters. If so, Ethan Frome very clearly meets the criterion.

Does the cosmic significance of the plot or message transform a mere novel into “literature?” Again, Ethan Frome would fail the test. But if the criterion is that “literature” reveals something powerful about our human condition and causes us to both empathize with others (in this case, the characters) and re-evaluate our own attitudes and situations, the novel succeeds extremely well. When reviewing computer games, I always contended that art means something that changes our perspective and affects us as individuals (for good or bad). In that sense, Ethan Frome could also be classified as “art,” as well as “literature.”

What is it about this relatively short book that placed it on so many required reading lists? Personally, I think it is the expression of that universal human experience of encountering hope after trying to live through a bad personal decision (uninformed career choice, bad marriage, poor investment, misplaced trust in another person or an authority, etc.), only to have that hope shattered. This story is about reaching for that hope, having that hope stolen, experiencing the despair of loss of hope, attempting to counteract that despair, and living with the consequences.

Attempting to summarize the story without too many spoilers is quite difficult. It is the story of a poor man who gives up his hopes for a future outside his small New England village as a dutiful son and husband. Having entangled himself in a marriage from which he cannot gracefully extricate himself, he settles into what might be described as an emotional adultery by fixating upon another. [Having been trapped in a horrible marriage, myself, I don’t need Wharton to tell me that this doesn’t work or Jung to explain why I conveniently forgot that I had read this book when I was fixating upon, not one, but many others. If anything, this book where the physical expression of desire is limited to hands touching, an arm supporting, and the briefest of kisses manages to express most eloquently the wisdom of Jesus’ teaching about having “done it in one’s heart” being equivalent to committing adultery in deed.]

Yes, the theme of being imprisoned in a relationship is found in this novel as in Age of Innocence and the ideal of that wonderful, perfect relationship is captured in many heart-wrenching scenes, but Wharton deals with the issue as realistically as if she was writing from a later era. The results of the decision to break out of the imprisonment are, of course, disastrous. Nothing in the book is as simple as it initially appears. One has a sense of foreboding throughout the book that is deftly underscored by heavy foreshadowing (descriptions of the cutter, mysterious allusions to a tragic event, and more), but the final result is (at least, to me) even more tragic than one expects.

Ethan Frome is a tragedy in the Greek sense. As such, it fits neatly into the “literature” category in my taxonomy. It’s just that poor Ethan didn’t seem to have enough “hubris” to bring this tragedy on his head. He seems more a victim than a tragic protagonist, but he reflects a lot of victims who suffer through horrid relationships and would like to grasp at something that seems like an escape. Even escapes have consequences. The question is: “Which consequences can you best live with?” I wonder what Ethan would say about his choice if he were “real” and alive today.
(less)

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Jul 16, 2012 Rebecca rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The image of two lovers driving a sled into a tree so they can commit dual suicide, but who in fact only end up severely crippling themselves, has not left me since I first read this book. I wouldn't recommend letting anyone under the age of 15 read this book purely for that reason (I mean, what kind of image is that to have floating around your head?). This novel is very claustrophobic and tragic. It was also the subject of my first-ever real, full-blown research paper, so it's intimately conne...more

5 likes · like · see review

May 01, 2010 Tatiana rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Tatiana by: 1001 Must Read Before You Die list

Shelves: 1001, 2010, classics

I love Edith Wharton, but honestly I don't understand why Ethan Frome is considered one of her best works.

Firstly, reading it, I felt like I'd already heard this story before. This novella about a man who is confined by his social status and unhappy marriage, and unable to realize his desires - be that a different profession or marriage to a different woman - is just all too familiar. Of course, Wharton's writing is as always remarkable, but the story itself is not impressive. Maybe my coldness...more

6 likes · like · see review

Feb 14, 2013 Jason Koivu rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

Jesus H Christ but this is bleak stuff! Even the town name Wharton chose, Starkfield....holy shit, hide the guns, rope and knives!

I was born and raised in New England, wandering about the wooded, hilly landscapes of Massachusetts, Vahmont, New Hampshah and Maine for much of my youth. The Springs and Summers were green and alive. The Autumns and Winters were dark and dead. So half the year was glorious, good times and the other half you spent desperately trying to survive. Ethan Frome is solidly...more

19 likes · like · see review

Oct 07, 2012 Jennifer (aka EM) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novellas, lonely-hearts-club

A brutal little novella, mean, sad and despairing, evocatively told - but too short (i.e., character- and detail-scarce) to pack the kind of wallop that House of Mirth did. Wharton's capacity to create a downward arc for her characters (view spoiler) is singular, and the furious engine that burns at the heart of her books.

7 likes · like · see review

Feb 19, 2009 Ashley rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ethan Frome is the story of Ethan Frome, a young man settled in an unhappy marraige who falls in love with his wife's young cousin Mattie Smith.

This story was terrible. My AP English class ate it up, but in my opinion, all the charectors are self-centered and think only of themselves. They are incapable of realizing what they are doing to eachother because all they can think of is themselves. Each charector is also extremely weak and lacks self control. Bottom line, This book is not a must read.

8 likes · like · see review

Apr 04, 2009 Janey rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2009

Hated, HATED reading this in high school. Upon a re-read a decade later: I don't hate it anymore, but the story, being domestic misery itself -- misery: unattractive, mundane, and absolutely suffocating -- is no walk in the freaking park. I'll concede that Ch. 8's conclusion is pretty stunning in laying out in a few sentences the hopelessness of Ethan's situation, and the ending has a similar effect. The wintry atmosphere is extremely well-done, and from the many over-the-top metaphors (but what...more

5 likes · like · see review

Nov 30, 2007 RachelAnne rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: people wanting to commit suicide but in need of more motivation to end it all.

Shelves: historical, novels

HATE! Wharton as usual writes well enough to make you sympathetic with characters forever imprisoned in bleakly miserable lives with no hope of redemption. One would inflict this on oneself willingly WHY?

10 likes · like · see review

Oct 09, 2012 Christina Wilder rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: what-was-the-point

Elegant version: The overall story and the characters seemed to embody a cautionary tale, and I'm not even sure of the point of the whole thing. It seemed to merely exist without a clear direction, and wallowed in its own bleak misery. It is akin to listening to a broken man mumbling to himself while not being certain that he's even aware that you are listening to him.

Rude version with spoilers and cursing: (view spoiler)...more

4 likes · like · see review

Nov 09, 2009 bup rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, 1001, 2009, librivox, novella

If you're looking for a punch in the gut that matches the solar plexus thumping you got from "Of Mice and Men," this is where you want to be.

Reading the other reviews that are listed here, I'm glad I never got assigned this in school. That apparently ruins the book.

Ethan's easy to judge. He's not perfect, and he blames fate for his situation when he should be blaming himself. Sure, he grew up on the Baltic-Avenue part of the board, and he has to farm, and his wife's a witch and stuff. But nobod...more

7 likes · like · see review

Apr 04, 2009 Sherien rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 20th-century

Edith Wharton is certainly one of my favorite author. I remember I was first captivated by her short story called “Roman Fever” and then amazed by “The age of Innocence”. What fascinates me about her is how well she narrates her story. The language may seem easy compared to other works in her time, but is certainly beautiful and flowing. Her works is always a fast-moving page-turner for me.

I just love how she describes the bleak-winter-rural area of New England in "Ethan Frome". The atmosphere...more

9 likes · like · see review

Aug 31, 2008 Leslie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novel

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I can't say I liked this book, I didn't. It was well written, but I didn't like how it was written, not the style or the narrator. She has this outsider poking around in this small town, just out of curiosity and boredom, about this man Ethan Frome, and then the whole body of the book, and when he said, "When I walked into the kitchen..." I couldn't even remember who he was. I didn't like that, it felt contrived. I didn't like how Zeena, the wife was portrayed as this awful person that had ruine...more

3 likes · like · see review

May 08, 2012 Elizabeth (Alaska) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 1001-books, classics, kindle, new-england, rws-spring-2012, 5-star-reads

In spite of her apparent recurring theme of forbidden love, I may never get enough of Edith Wharton. Does anyone write so beautifully?

She pronounced the word married as if her voice caressed it. It seemed a rustling covert leading to enchanted glades.

As I have professed being non-romantic, why is it I keep finding myself drawn to such delicious quotes?

In any case, Ethan Frome - the man - is a tragic character to whom I am drawn. He wanted more of life. I wanted more for him. The first chapter...more

4 likes · like · see review

Mar 18, 2007 Ainsley rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Haaaaaate. Though I will say this for Edith, it's not entirely her fault. A lovely**** woman named Carol A. Powers holds much of the responsibility for my grudge against this book. Not all, but a good amount. The book does suck on its own merits.

Let me tell you something. While I have no professional training in education, I can say this with absolute certainty: the way to teach teenagers literature is not - I repeat, NOT - to force them to memorize it.

This book does have a small place in my hea...more

5 likes · like · see review

May 02, 2007 Anna rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I just read this book for the first time because it seemed like the kind of thing that one should have read prior to becoming an English teacher. First of all, Edith Wharton was born in New York, lived in Paris, was nee Jones, as in the family from which the expression "keeping up with the Joneses" was derived -- why the f#ck is she writing about blizzard-stricken Western Mass.? And second of all, this entire book reminded me of the Annie Hall shtick about the horrible and the miserable. First h...more

4 likes · like · see review

Mar 20, 2013 Deanna McFadden rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is such a sad, sad story. Oh Ethan, saddled with a wife who's convinced she's chronically ill, poor, and running a farm that barely shows a living let alone a profit, the one bright light in his life is Mattie, his wife's cousin. And when Zeena decides she's just that much more ill that she needs even more help around the house, she wants to send Mattie away and replace her with a "hired" girl. Ethan, in love with Mattie from perhaps the instant she arrived in his life, feels torn between r...more This is such a sad, sad story. Oh Ethan, saddled with a wife who's convinced she's chronically ill, poor, and running a farm that barely shows a living let alone a profit, the one bright light in his life is Mattie, his wife's cousin. And when Zeena decides she's just that much more ill that she needs even more help around the house, she wants to send Mattie away and replace her with a "hired" girl. Ethan, in love with Mattie from perhaps the instant she arrived in his life, feels torn between responsibility and a chance at happiness if the two could run away to the West together. Tragedy strikes, and all three of their lives are forever changed.

Wharton is a master storyteller, and despite how short this novella is, it's certainly not lacking in depth or character. Stunning.

The "official" review:

Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome had been on my “this book seems interesting to me” list ever since I read the New Yorker article that Jonathan Franzen wrote, while the specifics of the article faded away rather quickly, the general sense that I should be reading more of her work stayed with me. We have done a version of this book for our public domain ebooks, and I glanced through it briefly, which gave me an idea of the tone and scope of the novel. But upon a closer reading, it’s actually quite incredible what Wharton accomplishes in the novella–she tells the entire story of the very sad, very tragic lives of Ethan, his wife Zeena, and her cousin Mattie with brevity, which actually allows for the weight of what happens to them to settle without it feeling overwhelming.

In short, Ethan’s unhappily married to a hypochondriac woman. Zeena wasn’t always that way–there was a point where she helped Ethan’s family out immensely (the reason they married), but for years they’d been engaged in a psychological battle. Zeena’s “illnesses” defining reasons why their lives are incapable of moving forward. When Mattie shows up, a poor cousin of Zeena’s without anywhere else to go, Ethan’s life changes. And when Zeena leaves for a far-flung doctor’s appointment, the two nights he and Mattie spend together have the potential to change their unhappy lives forever. For upon her return, Zeena means to turn Mattie out, and as she’s his last glance at happiness, Ethan will do anything to prevent it from happening.

Oh, the heartbreak in this little book. It’s truly and completely engrossing. Her choice of words, how she structures the story, it all comes together in a way that elevates the everyday-ness of the events to new levels. Parts of the house is described (and I’m paraphrasing) as “grungy” even for this poor area. Ethan schlumps and slogs through his life despite his relatively young age, and Zeena, with her greasy hair and dowdy clothes remains unbearable from day one. The narrator’s removed–a stranger, an outsider–they’re able to honestly look at what happened in ways that someone intimately involved with the events in the book would be unable to. Does their slight poverty increase the tragic elements in the novel? Absolutely. But it doesn’t define them. They act the way they do simply because they have no choice to otherwise. It’s a novel that explores how limited the choices are for women of a certain class, and it does that expertly. In a way, I enjoyed this little book even more than I enjoyed The House of Mirth or The Age of Innocence, both books I adore, by the way, because of its simplicity and sadness.(less)

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Aug 17, 2007 John Wiswell rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Literary readers who love the depressing stuff

Bleak fiction for bleak fiction’s sake about a miserable man in an inescapable, loveless marriage and his desire for another woman. Hollow and myopic, easily one of the most disappointing experiences I’ve ever had with a supposed classic. Other gothics would earn their tragedy, but this is just cold. If it has any merit it is an argument against theodicy, for look what gods we make when we play as authors.

Don't bother reading Ethan Frome. Go sledding instead.

10 likes · like · see review

Mar 14, 2013 Corrine rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

At first, I was expecting this to be a boring read because it is a Classic and a bit older. Turns out, I was very wrong! This book is told by an unknown narrator who becomes extremely interested in Ethan Frome's life. He learns Frome had been in a horrible accident about 20 years ago, which everyone calls Ethan's "smash-up." When a huge snowstorm hits New England, the narrator is forced to stay overnight in Frome's house, where he learns the details he's been looking for. Then the book flashes b...more

1 like · like · see review

Jan 28, 2010 Brigid *Flying Kick-a-pow!* rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-for-school, meh, realistic-fiction, historical-fiction, romance

Pretty good. :) I loved the writing style; the descriptions were very vivid. I didn't exactly "like" the characters, but I "believed" them, which I guess is more important. There were times when I felt like Wharton was sort of beating us over the head with symbolism, but I liked the realism and that it didn't end the way I expected. So, over all I liked it.

2 likes · like · see review

Sep 07, 2012 Connie Cortesi rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Connie by: Danny

Shelves: audible, 2013-read

ok, so Friar gets major props on this one...I loved it! It's a short read so there isn't much to review....well, there is LOTS to review...but to do so would give too much away....I shall instead say only that this reminded me of "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson....well it remind me of it all except for the fact that I hated "The Lottery" and I LOVED THIS ONE!!!! I will instead include a few quotes for your reading pleasure.....Let me tell you, Edith Wharton really knows how to string words toge...more

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Oct 06, 2011 Jonathan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classic-literature, own, 1001-books-to-read-before-you-die

Ethan Frome is more of a novella than a full length novel. However that is not to say that the story lacks any of the depth of longer novels. No indeed as the precise and yet beautiful language aids to promote a very deep and in many ways chilling tragedy of a tale.

If I were to subtitle Ethan Frome it could read something like: 'or why not to marry a hypochondriac wife and then allow a young attractive girl to board at your house.' Of course I suspect the subtitle would be rather long, be impra...more

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Jan 29, 2013 Stephanie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classic, americana

[Isn't this just the most delicious cover ever!? Source]

Ethan Frome

I read Ethan Frome for the first time in college and immediately fell in love. This book is written unlike any of Wharton's other books, but still contains some of the same themes of isolation and redemption. We read it with Our Town. Over the years I've taken to called this unit the Small Town Unit, as we explore the plusses and minuses of small town life and the gloriousness of being alive through these two works. I've...more

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Who else sympathised with Zeena?	15	47	Mar 17, 2013 02:05am
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About Edith Wharton

Edith Newbold Jones was born into such wealth and privilege that her family inspired the phrase "keeping up with the Joneses." The youngest of three children, Edith spent her early years touring Europe with her parents and, upon the family's return to the United States, enjoyed a privileged childhood in New York and Newport, Rhode Island. Edith's creativity and talent soon became obvious: By the a...more Edith Newbold Jones was born into such wealth and privilege that her family inspired the phrase "keeping up with the Joneses." The youngest of three children, Edith spent her early years touring Europe with her parents and, upon the family's return to the United States, enjoyed a privileged childhood in New York and Newport, Rhode Island. Edith's creativity and talent soon became obvious: By the age of eighteen she had written a novella, (as well as witty reviews of it) and published poetry in the Atlantic Monthly.

After a failed engagement, Edith married a wealthy sportsman, Edward Wharton. Despite similar backgrounds and a shared taste for travel, the marriage was not a success. Many of Wharton's novels chronicle unhappy marriages, in which the demands of love and vocation often conflict with the expectations of society. Wharton's first major novel, The House of Mirth, published in 1905, enjoyed considerable literary success. Ethan Frome appeared six years later, solidifying Wharton's reputation as an important novelist. Often in the company of her close friend, Henry James, Wharton mingled with some of the most famous writers and artists of the day, including F. Scott Fitzgerald, André Gide, Sinclair Lewis, Jean Cocteau, and Jack London.

In 1913 Edith divorced Edward. She lived mostly in France for the remainder of her life. When World War I broke out, she organized hostels for refugees, worked as a fund-raiser, and wrote for American publications from battlefield frontlines. She was awarded the French Legion of Honor for her courage and distinguished work.

The Age of Innocence, a novel about New York in the 1870s, earned Wharton the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1921 -- the first time the award had been bestowed upon a woman. Wharton traveled throughout Europe to encourage young authors. She also continued to write, lying in her bed every morning, as she had always done, dropping each newly penned page on the floor to be collected and arranged when she was finished. Wharton suffered a stroke and died on August 11, 1937. She is buried in the American Cemetery in Versailles, France.
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Quotes from Ethan Frome

“I want to put my hand out and touch you. I want to do for you and care for you. I want to be there when you're sick and when you're lonesome.” — 9 people liked it

“They stood together in the gloom of the spruces, an empty world glimmering about them wide and gray under the stars” — 4 people liked it

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