(A fourth ending was written for the silent film produced in 1921 by William C. As explained in this Wikipedia article, the ending was altered twice for the stage production. Soon after the publication of the novel, Zona Gale wrote a stage adaptation of the story. However, as events unfold, the reader watches Lulu, in her understated manner, gradually gain the confidence and courage to break free. She is the stereotypical timid spinster - ridiculed and bullied by her brother-in-law and treated more like a maid than a family member - and rarely speaks up for herself. Miss Lulu Bett is a 33-year-old single woman who (along with her mother) lives with her sister and brother-in-law and their family, and 'earns her keep' by serving them as housekeeper. Reportedly, a favourite theme of her novels was 'women's frustration at their lack of opportunities'. According to Wikipedia, Zona Gale was a well-educated and progressive thinker, a politically-active supporter of the cause of women's rights, active in the National Women's Party and the Lucy Stone League (which lobbied for the right of a woman to continue to use her birth-surname after marriage). While looking for another recording by 'Jacquerie', I happened upon Gale's sixth novel, Miss Lulu Bett, written some eight years later in 1920. This unorthodox tale of the festive season was, to me, the breath of fresh air that I had sought, the one seasonal story (among numerous syrupy novels touted as 'Christmas-themed') which embodies the truth of love. I was first impressed by the work of journalist, playwright, and author Zona Gale as I listened to a Librivox recording of her second novel, Christmas A Story (1912) (capably read by one of my favourite Librivox readers, Christine Dufour, aka 'Jacquerie').

Miss lulu bett book