An abridged version of the tale of Rebecca's adventures after she leaves her home at Sunnybrook Farm to go live in town with her spinster aunts, one harsh and demanding, the other soft and sentimental.

When Harvey Cheyne, the spoiled son of an American millionaire, falls overboard a luxury liner, he is rescued from drowning by a New England fishing schooner. The schooner has just begun her summer expedition into the Atlantic and her skipper refuses to turn around to take the teenager home. To earn his keep, Harvey must prove his worth: through the grueling--and ultimately triumphant--mastery of a fisherman's skills.

Talkative, ten-year-old Rebecca goes to live with her spinster aunts, one harsh and demanding, the other soft and sentimental, with whom she spends seven difficult but rewarding years growing up.

Tall, powerful, Ethan Frome is "the most stiking man in Starkfield." But the hard-working farmer has become trapped -- between his obligations to an ailing wife and his attraction to the beautiful Mattie Silver. As his story unfolds, it is a tale of love, of tragedy, and of the dark bond that exists between the two forces.