Elizabeth Gilbert "Stern Men"

"Stern Men" is the debut novel by Elizabeth Gilbert, author of the international bestsellers Eat, Pray, Love, The Nature of Things, and City of Girls.

For several generations, the inhabitants of two small islands have been feuding over the right to catch lobsters in common waters. These lands have their own laws and traditions, not subject to progress or the influence of modernity. Men earn their living, women take care of the house and the farm. Each of the islanders has their own history and family problems. Some dream of escaping to the big land, while others, like the main character, are drawn to their native island. Eighteen-year-old Ruth ignores her family's advice to move to the mainland and go to college. She dreams of continuing her ancestors' business and going fishing. In addition, she falls in love with a boy from a hostile island, but hoping for reconciliation between the two communities is a futile endeavor. But Ruth fights in a special way for the right to be happy where her true home is, and sets her own rules of the game in a world where everything has been tailored to strict male rules for centuries.