Chapters 19, 20, and 21 Summary

A month after the disastrous first production of the Gopher Prairie Dramatic Association, Bea marries Bjornstam in a small wedding orchestrated by Carol. The other women in town cannot understand Carol letting Bea leave to marry, but Bea is soon replaced by a woman named, Oscarina, who is assimilated without incident into the Kennicott household.

Soon after the wedding, Kennicott tells Carol that he has done very well on a land deal, and that they can afford to have a baby. Carol takes the news without much enthusiasm. Seemingly, and without much effort on her part, she has a baby boy, which the Kennicotts name Hugh after Carol's father. Carol surprises herself in her devotion to Hugh, immerses herself in the best interests of her son, and begins to immediately make decisions about his choices for the best college education.

Not...