He was the father of my generation of American writers and the tradition of American writing' William Faulkner This timeless cycle of short stories lays bare the life of a small town in the American Midwest. The central character is George Willard, a young reporter on the WINESBURG EAGLE to whom, one by one, the town's inhabitants confide their hopes, their dreams, and their fears. The town of friendly but solitary people comes to life as Anderson's special talent exposes the emotional undercurrants that bind its people together.