Born in Maine, Sarah Orne Jewett is known for her success at capturing the
dialogue and sensibility of New England life. Her simple style and quiet tales earned her
a name as one of the foremost documentarians of the culture of her region.
"The Flight of Betsey Lane" tells the story of an aging woman living on a poor-farm on the
Maine seacoast in the late 1800s. Despite her oft-stated desire to see the world - or at
least the Centennial Exposition underway in Philadelphia, featuring such exotic exhibits as the
telephone and the photograph - Betsey Lane seems destined to live out the rest of her life in dull routine.
When an unexpected visitor gives Betsey an envelope full of money, she sets out in pursuit of her dream.
