Miss Lulu Bett by Zona Gale

Written by Wisconsin native Zona Gale and published in 1920, it reminded me somewhat of Sinclair Lewis's Main Street, though not of such epic size. It also reminded me of Ernest Poole's His Family, which won the first ever Pulitzer Prize for literature in 1918. Gale would re-write Miss Lulu Bett for the stage where she would be the first ever woman writer to earn the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1921.
Lulu Bett is a 34 year old dowdy spinster who has for the past 15 years lived with her younger sister Ina, who is married to an older widower Dwight who brings a daughter from the previous marriage. The Deacons now have an 8-10 year old daughter of their own, and Diana from the first marriage is now 18. Ina and Lulu have Mrs Bett, their mother, living with them. Lulu has been the housekeeper and cook for the family, and we find out she fills an even more important role. She has not left the small town of Warbleton in years, and she lives an empty existence. To make things worse, Dwight runs the house like a drill sergeant, and is unforgiving and cruel in the way he treats the woman, especially Lulu. Yet she is the glue that holds the family together, as they need it very much.

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