Here's a review from Amazon: Like an earlier best-seller, "The Visits Of Elizabeth", this 1907 novel is in the form of letters, meaning you get only one side of the story. The main protagonist, who doesn't appear to have a name anywhere in the book, is a widow who has decided to get her life started again by becoming a missionary. She's writing to her best "Mate" (who also doesn't warrant a name) in Kentucky. Our Missionary is sent to the "heathen" (her word) country of Japan, because as we all know it doesn't matter how old your civilization is, you're just waiting for white people to come save you. The storyline is set around the time of the Sino-Russian War. Because the writing is confined to letter form, we the reader don't get very deep detail of what life was like in Japan at the turn of the 20th century or of the war, which is too bad. On the other hand, this allows the book to be read quickly and easily. I finished it in two days. The protagonist isn't a bad sort. She's dealing with her homesickness and loneliness while also maintaining a sort of long-distance love affair. No, not with her "Mate", with this other guy she's known all her life. As always, I warn readers to remember the times these early books were written in. Don't expect much politically correct terminology here. Overall, it's not a bad read.