The story she tells began six years before and takes place in a small New England town, often referred to as a village, named Linnville.

The town is set in the country and is composed of a small community where people are by no means rich, but are able to live comfortably.

The mother of the family, Mrs. H. Boardman Jameson, tries to “improve” the community through readings of formal literature and attempts to change the way the people eat, dress and decorate their homes on both the interior and the exterior.

Their arrival caused a great commotion as the Jamesons son, Cobb, saw smoke inside his new temporary residence and proceeded to run outside and yell “Fire!” Word quickly traveled down the street and a crowd formed outside the Liscom's as firemen drenched the entire house.

Mrs. Caroline Liscom was furious that her house was soaked with water when the smoke was only caused by her chimney, and as a result was rude to her new boarders.

Mrs. Jameson quickly gave her family a bad reputation at a Linnville annual picnic several days after her arrival.

Several weeks later, the Jamesons return to the city for the winter and the next chapter begins their second summer in Linnville.

She is so distracted with trying to “improve” Linnville that she does not notice that one of her daughters is in a clandestine relationship with the Liscom boy, who Mrs. Jameson does not approve of due to his family's inferior social standing to her own.

She invites celebrities with connections to Linnville, organizes a parade, and sets up a dinner with speeches from honorable people.

We do not know if this is actually the case, or if his big blue eyes, parted mouth, and long curly hair just gives him this look of constant fear.

Mr. H. Boardman Jameson does not have a prominent role in the novel because he is always working in the city while the family summers in Linnville.

One of the major underlying themes of the novel is the wide difference in lifestyles between upper and lower socio-economic classes, and the ideas that are instilled in people based on their wealth.

The people in Linnville emphasize close relationships with other members of the community, and do not feel the need to accessorize their lives with unnecessary luxuries.

They are willing to work hard to make a living, are unaffected by how well one dresses or how nice their home is, and enjoy socializing whether it is in a Sewing or Literature Club, or at town picnics.

While everyone in Linnville treats each other with respect and equality after years of friendship, Mrs. Jameson assumes power just because she is wealthier than the others in the community.

Mrs. Jameson thinks she and her family are better than the rest in every aspect of life, from fashion to interior design and education.

At the beginning of the novel, the people of Linnville find the Jameson's city apparel to be absurd, and even comment on how different their names are.

Sophia says that the names Harriet and Sarah “seemed rather odd taste in these city people” (Wilkins page 37), and that in the country they prefer Hattie and Sadie.

Mrs. Jameson attempts to corrupt the innocence and simplicity of Linnville by modernizing it and introducing customs from her wealthy, city life to its people.

She tries to make the people eat the healthy foods she does, dress the way she does, educate them with formal literature she enjoys, and even tries to beautify the town itself.

Although Mary E. Wilkins was considered "a prolific writer of short stories and novels",[1] The Jamesons received little praise.

"[2] A similar comment was made in The Ladies Home Journal that said the novel is "the drollest story ever written of a modern, up-to-date city woman in a village.

[5] A review in The New York Times praised the book as a "light read" that "occupies a niche of well-deserved respect in our minds.