Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson

Alice Hindman, a woman of twenty-seven when George Willard was a mere boy, had lived in Winesburg all her life. She clerked in Winney's Dry Goods Store and lived with her mother, who had married a second husband.

Alice's stepfather was a carriage painter, and given to drink. His story is an odd one. It will be worth telling some day.