It's early June, 1889, late spring in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood. A Bostonian and a friend from New York have met unexpectedly at the corner of Boylston Street and Massachusetts Avenue. We join them in the middle of an animated conversation:
Bostonian: All I can say is, the ideas in this book have wholly changed my life. As you well know, I was an invalid longer than I care to remember. Now I am hale and hearty.
Visitor: Just by reading a book?. ... By a woman?
