Cathy N. Davidson is Professor of English at Duke University and editor of American Literature. She is co-editor of The Oxford Companion to Women's Writing in the United States and author of Revolution and the Word: The Rise of the Novel in America. Victoria Clements is a professor of English at the College of Southern Maryland and co-editor of Catharine Maria Sedgwick: Critical Perspectives.

"This is a wonderful read..."--Gregory S. Jackson, University of Arizona"A detailed, well-edited introduction by Victoria Clements makes this...a refreshing, informative classroom tool....Engaging...highly recommended."--SEWSA News"A fine protrayal, from a woman's point of view, of a complex, multilayered New England."--Professor Veronic Makowsky, University of Connecticut"Invaluable."--Professor E.N. Feltskog, University of Wisconsin"Excellent Introduction, Notes and Bibliography. [A] very good value for students."--Dr. Nancy Lang, Marshall UniversitySeries review:"Oxford University Press's Early American Women Writers series, spearheaded by Cathy N. Davidson, features lovely uniform editions....Introductions by Davidson and other scholars place each novel in its literary and cultural milieu....They deserve widespread attention among feminist readers and scholars--if only for their portrayal of the lives, times, and concerns of early American women."--Belles Lettres