The Old Wive's Tale Author:Arnold Bennett First published 1908, The Old Wive's Tale tells the story of the Baines sisters-shy, retiring Constance and defiant, romantic Sophia-over the course of nearly half a century. Bennett traces the sister's lives from childhood in their father's drapery shop in provincial Bursley, England, during the mid-Victorian era, through their married lives, t... more »o modern industrial age, when they are reunited as old women.« less