Plain Jane and pretty Betty

"Plain Jane and pretty Betty" by May Hollis Barton is a novel written in the early 20th century. Set in a small American town, it contrasts the shy, resourceful Jane Cross with privileged Betty Browning while exploring class, kindness, ambition, and the weight of reputation as a girl tries to “win out” through character and effort. The opening of the story follows sixteen-year-old Jane as she leaves the grim mining town of Coal Run with her foster guardians, the Powells, survives a moving-van crash, and finds unexpected hospitality from odd but generous neighbors, Lydia Terrin and “Mad Marion.” Settling into Greenville, Jane’s first errand leads to a stinging slight from the beautiful Betty Browning, but also to a friendly ally in Billy Dobson, a grocer’s clerk and hopeful young inventor. That night a massive fire destroys Martin & Hull’s grain warehouses, injures Mr. Powell’s hands, and threatens the Brownings’ fortune because of a recent loan; by morning, suspicion—fueled by a witness and Mr. Hull’s resentment—unfairly falls on Billy. Jane publicly defends him, then returns home worried about money and quietly resolves to help as the Powells face hardship.

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