Cheerfulness Breaks In

''You read her, laughing, and want to do your best to protect her characters from any reality but their own'' New York Times

It is summer 1939 and the social event of the year is about to take place: Rose Birkett, a flighty beauty with a penchant for breaking engagements and hearts, is finally getting married, and the whole village - especially her parents - breathes a sigh of relief.

By autumn, how...