This story, by one of Europe's most skilful practitioners of the art of short fiction, has now been translated into English for the first time. Zose, a beautiful, diligent and innocent peasant girl, works as a maid in the service of a wealthy country estate. Courted by the local young men and resistant to the attentions of her master, who forces himself upon her, she is in fact wholly in love with Tofylis, the huntsman. But Tofylis's good looks and practised seduction manoeuvres have blinded her to his brutishness and faux sophistication. This simple tale from 1897 is made deeply complex by Zemaite's acute, compassionate eye and ear for the lives of the lower classes in Lithuania at the time. As a depiction of patriarchal attitudes, coercive control and the limited options facing poor women, it has remarkable contemporary resonance.

*Amazon does not support all the Lithuanian letters - notabley "z with a hook" "e with a dot." The book itself DOES contain these letters.* Born to impoverished gentry, Zemaite became one of the major participants in the Lithuanian National Revival. She wrote about the peasants and their way of life in a vernacular that closely resembled the language spoken by them - lively and rich in vocabulary. Her works are usually dark as she depicts poverty, materialism, and arguments within a family. The author paints natural images of everyday life with petty conflicts, lively conversations, impoverished surroundings, and beautiful nature. This volume includes some of her most famous stories including: Marti, Sutkai, and Petras Keumelis.