Emily Post was a daughter of high society, one of Manhattan's most sought-after débutantes. After a scandalous divorce forced her to become her own person, she became an emblem of a new kind of manners in which etiquette and ethics were forever entwined.

These stories tell of the ways in which the American frontier transformed the strangers who came to this country into Americans.

"A smart, thoughtful, and timely exploration of two sisters' lives from the 1950s to the present as they struggle to find their places--and be true to themselves--in a rapidly evolving world. Mrs. Everything is an ambitious, richly textured journey through history--and herstory--as these two sisters navigate a changing America over the course of their lives"-- Growing up in 1950s Detroit, Jo and Bethie Kaufman's roles in the family are clearly defined....

Daisy Fuller Williams is on her deathbed in a New Orleans hospital the day that Hurricane Katrina hits. At her side is her adult daughter, Caroline. Daisy asks Caroline to read to her aloud from the diary of Daisy's lifelong friend, Benjamin Button. Benjamin's diary recounts his entire extraordinary life. The unusual aspect of his life is that he ages backwards, being born an old man.