In
Points East, Narratives of New England (1930) she adapted the rhythms and directness of the oral language of rural Maine to long poetic narratives with effects similar to those achieved by her older contemporary, Robert Frost. All three of her novels for adults reached best-seller lists, and
Time Out of Mind won the Booksellers Award for the most distinguished novel of 1935.
All This and Heaven Too (1938) sold a third of a million copies before becoming a highly successful motion picture.
And Now Tomorrow (1942), which reflects labor strife, class conflict, and the changing economy of a New England textile-mill town, interested Americans struggling out of the Depression. As a novelist, Field's awareness of intellectual and economic change, her analysis of complex family patterns, and her emphasis on nature as an ordering influence both for society and individual character all enlarge her novels beyond the scope of most popular romantic fiction of the 1930s.
As illustrator of children's books, Field popularized the quill-pen and reed-brush techniques and the black-pen outline sketch, and she initiated a new stress on varied colors and meticulous hand coloring. She illustrated several of her own works: Pointed People , Polly Patchwork, Little Dog Toby, Pocket-Handkerchief Park, Patchwork Plays, The Yellow Shop, Just Across the Street, Susanna B and William C, All Through the Night, and Christmas Time.
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