Green Doors

"Green Doors" by Ethel Cook Eliot is a story about a family's complicated relationships, shining a light on Petra Farwell's difficulties with her stepmother, Clare, all set amidst emotional ups and downs in their wealthy lives. The book starts with Doctor Lewis Pryne, a mind doctor, talking with Dick Wilder, a friend of the family. Dick worries about Petra, a young woman who seems detached even though she has everything, and he believes Petra's stepmother cares greatly for her well-being. The story then pairs Lewis with the Farwell family showing that he might look deeper into Petra's emotional problems, and how everyone around her is involved. Furthermore, the reader begins to understand Petra's past; especially a friend named Teresa, whose role in Petra's life provokes consideration of obligation, death, and emotional loneliness in what seems to be an ideal life.