Chapter 3: March 1895 Summary

Henry decides to decline all social invitations and throw himself into his writing. In the solitude of his own home, he feels content, and finds the silence gives him a greater control over his thoughts. He can now choose what memories and ideas he will focus on, and which to ignore or push away.

Looking for story inspiration, Henry recalls a ghost story he had once heard, one that the teller had badly botched and that Henry felt he could make much better. As he develops the tale, he thinks of his sister Alice, who died three years prior. This leads Henry to consider the structure of his own family, the travels of his parents, and how each of his brothers and his sister were allowed to develop. William was nurtured and eventually became prominent in business and writing. Wilky and...