Tales of Trail and Town

"Tales of Trail and Town" by Bret Harte is a set of stories that show what life was like in the old West, focusing on the people living in new towns trying to make a life for themselves and their struggles. The first story pulls us into the world of Peter Atherly, a man dealing with his family's history while trying to make a name for himself in the town that carries his name, which shows the contrast between his rising success and his mother's difficult past. Peter’s mother reveals secrets to him while he is faced with people's opinions of him. Meanwhile, Peter’s sister, Jinny, is stepping into a new phase of her life, which adds to Peter's challenge of separating himself from the past, exploring ideas about who we are, what we owe to our families, and the tough environment of the frontier that sets the stage for the other stories to come.