Summary

In Chapter 1, Harold and the Letter, Harold Fry is seated at the breakfast table when the post arrives. His wife, Maureen, is a small woman with silver hair. She announces that he has a letter. It's in a pink envelope and was postmarked in Berwick-upon-Tweed. He doesn't know anyone in Berwick and confirms that it's addressed to him at the correct address, 13 Fossebridge Road, Kingsbridge, South Hams. When he opens the envelope, he discovers the letter is from St. Bernadine's Hospice. Queenie Hennessy, a woman Harold worked with years earlier, writes that she has cancer and is writing to say goodbye. Harold asks Maureen if she remembers Queenie but Maureen says she doesn't know why she should, then returns to her cleaning.

Harold gets some paper and prepares to write a reply to Queenie's letter. He has never been able to express his...