费城思古河边的一个小镇，安静而有历史。其原住居民是北美印第安人，丛林、山谷、河流是他们的家园。懂工业的欧洲人来了以后，在宽阔的河流上建起了水坝，开起了工厂。这儿住进了坊厂主、劳工、商贾、平民，千万种人生在这里升起又落下。本书叙写了小镇古木老屋、人物故事、家常素日......透过这一层人文的角度，静静的小镇是活跃与拥挤的。有些地方你从来没有去过，却感觉似曾相识，近在咫尺，这一个小镇它是每一个读者的。作者对中西方文化有细致入微的了解。无浮光掠影、无走马观花，作者与众不同的细心描摹令人耳目一新，且赋予本书清新脱俗的笔墨气韵。(It is a small town on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, peaceful but with a long history. Its original residents were North American Indians. Bushes, valleys and river were their homeland. Upon arrival, the industrial Europeans built a dam on the river, and established factories. Here settled were workshop owners, laborers, merchants, and common people. Various lives rise and fall here. The book tells about the old wooden huts, stories of people, daily life of people... of the small town. In a human view, the quiet small town is active and crowded. Some places, which you have never been to, seem to be so familiar and so close to you. This small town is for every reader. The author has a delicate understanding of Chinese and western cultures. Without skimming over the surface or glancing over things hurriedly, the author presents a unique and novel picture and adds the book with fresh and refined styles and wordings. )