Riceyman Steps · Chapters

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Chapter companions for Riceyman Steps by Arnold Bennett.

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Chapter 1
Riceyman Steps
On an autumn afternoon in 1919, a hatless, limping man in his forties ascends Riceyman Steps in Clerkenwell, stopping on the half-landing to observe the bustling industrial scene below. He is secretly watching a confectioner's shop where a woman who has begun to inflame him works. He dreams of sharing with her his romantic vision of Clerkenwell's history, from its green springs and nunneries to Nell Gwynn's palace. When rain falls, he follows a potential customer into his own secondhand bookshop.
Chapter 2
The Customer
A dapper, well-dressed customer enters Henry Earlforward's bookshop in Riceyman Steps, seeking a Shakespeare edition. Henry shows him various options and eventually sells him a Globe edition for three-and-six. The customer reveals himself as Dr. Raste, who inquires about Elsie, the young charwoman employed by Henry, explaining that a shell-shocked lad in his service is romantically interested in her. Henry, though inwardly agitated, gives a terse, noncommittal response.
Chapter 3
III: The Bookseller at Home
Henry Earlforward is shown in his private den at the back of his bookshop, a cluttered and dusty space. He reflects on his routine, his inheritance from his uncle T. T. Riceyman, and the dramatic story of the Clerkenwell Underground Railway construction. His calm is disturbed by the possibility that his charwoman Elsie might leave to marry, and by his growing interest in the lady across the way, Violet Arb.
Chapter 4
IV: Elsie
Elsie, Mr. Earlforward's charwoman, reveals that she also works for Mrs. Arb, the new proprietress of the confectioner's shop across the street. Mr. Earlforward, intrigued, offers a cookery book for Mrs. Arb but is pleased to learn she will only pay sixpence. He later takes the book with him on his evening walk, contemplating a visit to Mrs. Arb's shop.
Chapter 5
The Gift
Mr. Earlforward visits Mrs. Arb's shop under the pretense of offering a cookery book, but the visit becomes a significant social exchange. Mrs. Arb criticizes the neighborhood's lack of culture and vitality, revealing her discontent with her business and surroundings. Mr. Earlforward, captivated by her energy and originality, impulsively gives her the book as a gift, marking a deepening of their acquaintance.

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Riceyman Steps

The Customer

III: The Bookseller at Home

IV: Elsie

The Gift