The War against Mrs. Hadley plot
"AS TIMELY AS TODAYS HEADLINES!"
Stella Hadley doesn't like change. She refuses to read the Washington Chronicle newspaper that used to belong to her husband. Although her husband died years ago, her servants have to set a place for him at the dinner table for each birthday. Every year the same guests are invited, including her children Teddy and Pat, her longtime love Elliot Fulton, Dr Leonard Meecham and friend Cecilia Talbot. This time her birthday is celebrated on December 7, 1941, the day of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Everyone contributes in this wartime but Stella acts as if nothing has changed.