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A Country Doctor by Sarah Orne Jewett
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A Country Doctor

A Novel

A Novel

By Sarah Orne Jewett

By Sarah Orne Jewett

By Sarah Orne Jewett

By Sarah Orne Jewett

By Sarah Orne Jewett

By Sarah Orne Jewett

By Sarah Orne Jewett

By Sarah Orne Jewett

Best Seller

Part of Modern Library Torchbearers

Part of Modern Library Torchbearers

Mass Market Paperback $4.95

Apr 06, 1999 | ISBN 9780553214987

Paperback $17.00

Jun 10, 2025 | ISBN 9780593241950

Ebook $1.99

Jun 24, 2008 | ISBN 9780553905205

Ebook $7.99

Jun 10, 2025 | ISBN 9780593241967

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    A Country Doctor by Sarah Orne Jewett
    Mass Market Paperback $4.95
    Apr 06, 1999 | ISBN 9780553214987

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    • $4.95

      Apr 06, 1999 | ISBN 9780553214987

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • $17.00

      Jun 10, 2025 | ISBN 9780593241950

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    • Jun 24, 2008 | ISBN 9780553905205

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • Jun 10, 2025 | ISBN 9780593241967

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    About A Country Doctor

    Though not as well-known as the writers she influenced, Sarah Orne Jewett nevertheless remains one of the most important American novelists of the late nineteenth century. Published in 1884, Jewett’s first novel, A Country Doctor, is a luminous portrayal of rural Maine and a semiautobiographical look at her world. In it, Nan’s struggle to choose between marriage and a career as a doctor, between the confining life of a small town and a self-directed one as a professional, mirrors Jewett’s own conflicts as well as eloquently giving voice to the leading women’s issues of her time. Perhaps even more important, Jewett’s perfect details about wild flowers and seaside wharfs, farm women knitting by the fireside and sailors going upriver to meet the moonlight, convey a realism that has seldom been surpassed and stamp her writing with her signature style. A contemporary and friend of Willa Cather, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Julia Ward Howe, Sarah Orne Jewett is widely recognized as a pathfinder in American literary history, courageously pursuing a road less traveled that led the way for other women to follow.

    About A Country Doctor

    A forgotten nineteenth-century classic novel about a young woman torn between her passion for medicine and what society expects of her.

    “Perfection . . . beautiful and delicate work.”—Willa Cather 

    Bright, vivacious, and “wild as a hawk,” Nan Prince is an orphan adopted by the local general practitioner, Dr. Leslie. A loving but unconventional father, Dr. Leslie encourages Nan’s curiosity and her talent for medicine, despite the opposition and skepticism of their small Maine town. 

    But when Nan enrolls in medical school in Dunport, she is faced with a dilemma: her new “smart society” friends are all scandalized by the thought of a young, attractive woman as a country doctor—including a handsome lawyer who believes Nan would make the perfect wife. A young woman full of love and ambition, Nan faces a crossroads: Will she pursue medicine, her first love, or abandon it for marriage? 

    A neglected classic that interweaves a young woman’s growing sense of purpose with the untrammeled beauty of Jewett’s beloved rural Maine, A Country Doctor is a rich and rewarding read for fans of Delia Owens, Helen Macdonald, and Elizabeth Strout. 

    The Modern Library Torchbearers series features women who wrote on their own terms, with boldness, creativity, and a spirit of resistance.

    About A Country Doctor

    Though not as well-known as the writers she influenced, Sarah Orne Jewett nevertheless remains one of the most important American novelists of the late nineteenth century. Published in 1884, Jewett’s first novel, A Country Doctor, is a luminous portrayal of rural Maine and a semiautobiographical look at her world. In it, Nan’s struggle to choose between marriage and a career as a doctor, between the confining life of a small town and a self-directed one as a professional, mirrors Jewett’s own conflicts as well as eloquently giving voice to the leading women’s issues of her time. Perhaps even more important, Jewett’s perfect details about wild flowers and seaside wharfs, farm women knitting by the fireside and sailors going upriver to meet the moonlight, convey a realism that has seldom been surpassed and stamp her writing with her signature style. A contemporary and friend of Willa Cather, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Julia Ward Howe, Sarah Orne Jewett is widely recognized as a pathfinder in American literary history, courageously pursuing a road less traveled that led the way for other women to follow.

    About A Country Doctor

    A forgotten nineteenth-century classic novel about a young woman torn between her passion for medicine and what society expects of her.

    “Perfection . . . beautiful and delicate work.”—Willa Cather 

    Bright, vivacious, and “wild as a hawk,” Nan Prince is an orphan adopted by the local general practitioner, Dr. Leslie. A loving but unconventional father, Dr. Leslie encourages Nan’s curiosity and her talent for medicine, despite the opposition and skepticism of their small Maine town. 

    But when Nan enrolls in medical school in Dunport, she is faced with a dilemma: her new “smart society” friends are all scandalized by the thought of a young, attractive woman as a country doctor—including a handsome lawyer who believes Nan would make the perfect wife. A young woman full of love and ambition, Nan faces a crossroads: Will she pursue medicine, her first love, or abandon it for marriage? 

    A neglected classic that interweaves a young woman’s growing sense of purpose with the untrammeled beauty of Jewett’s beloved rural Maine, A Country Doctor is a rich and rewarding read for fans of Delia Owens, Helen Macdonald, and Elizabeth Strout. 

    The Modern Library Torchbearers series features women who wrote on their own terms, with boldness, creativity, and a spirit of resistance.

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

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    Also by Sarah Orne Jewett

    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    A Country Doctor
    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    See all books by Sarah Orne Jewett

    Also by Sarah Orne Jewett

    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    A Country Doctor
    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    See all books by Sarah Orne Jewett

    Also by Sarah Orne Jewett

    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    A Country Doctor
    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    See all books by Sarah Orne Jewett

    Also by Sarah Orne Jewett

    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    A Country Doctor
    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    The Country of the Pointed Firs and Other Stories
    See all books by Sarah Orne Jewett

    About Sarah Orne Jewett

    Sarah Orne Jewett (1849–1909) was a novelist, short story writer, and poet. As a young child she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and was encouraged to take frequent walks, falling in love with nature as a result. At nineteen, Jewett… More about Sarah Orne Jewett

    About Sarah Orne Jewett

    Sarah Orne Jewett (1849–1909) was a novelist, short story writer, and poet. As a young child she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and was encouraged to take frequent walks, falling in love with nature as a result. At nineteen, Jewett… More about Sarah Orne Jewett

    About Sarah Orne Jewett

    Sarah Orne Jewett (1849–1909) was a novelist, short story writer, and poet. As a young child she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and was encouraged to take frequent walks, falling in love with nature as a result. At nineteen, Jewett… More about Sarah Orne Jewett

    About Sarah Orne Jewett

    Sarah Orne Jewett (1849–1909) was a novelist, short story writer, and poet. As a young child she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and was encouraged to take frequent walks, falling in love with nature as a result. At nineteen, Jewett… More about Sarah Orne Jewett

    Product Details

    Category: Classic Fiction | Historical Fiction | Literary Fiction

    Mass Market Paperback | $4.95
    Published by Bantam Classics
    Apr 06, 1999 | 304 Pages | 4-3/16 x 6-7/8 | ISBN 9780553214987

    Category: Classic Fiction | Literary Fiction

    Paperback | $17.00
    Published by Modern Library
    Jun 10, 2025 | 272 Pages | 5-3/16 x 8 | ISBN 9780593241950

    Category: Classic Fiction | Historical Fiction | Literary Fiction

    Ebook | $1.99
    Published by Bantam Classics
    Jun 24, 2008 | 304 Pages | ISBN 9780553905205

    Category: Classic Fiction | Literary Fiction

    Ebook | $7.99
    Published by Modern Library
    Jun 10, 2025 | 304 Pages | ISBN 9780593241967

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    “A fellow craftsman and a woman of genius and courage.”—Henry James

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