In 1956, a book was published that skyrocketed to the top of the bestseller lists and remained there for two years. It spawned an Academy Award nominated film, a prime time series, and a sequel in both book and film. Controversy surrounded the novel from the beginning- - its sexual openness, multi-layered portraits of small-town people leading small-town lives, the foibles, weaknesses, flaws of being human revealed glaringly- - all this in a page-turning read by a young woman from a small town in New Hamsphire.