General

Help with female point of view critique request

Um, yeah... I need a few recommendations on good literature to read that epitomizes the female outlook on the world so that I can write a short story with a female lead.
I'd prefer some first person point of view stories, but well done limited third person is also welcome.
------
On another note... I'd like some criticism on a short story I wrote based on my favorite poem, [url=http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-rain-was-ending-and-light/]"The Rain Was Ending, and Light" by Laurence Binyon.[/url] For now let's just say that Mr.Binyon developed the story and I transcribed it. Anything but too cliched will do.

----
Rain was rare in the town; in fact it had been almost twenty years since the last time that the heavens decided to shed tears for them and even then it had been hidden in the depths of the night so there was not a single soul who had noticed it. So to the people of the town this sudden occurrence was momentous as a white Christmas. For an outsider, it would have been quite the spectacle: lessons were canceled and students sent home early, a number of workers taking holiday just to rush home and sit by their windowpane to watch the rain fall onto the streets, even the infamous residents of the mansion set precisely in the center of the town had stopped in their tracks to stare at the sky. [i]Just to watch the rain.[/i] It only lasted twenty minutes, but to the townspeople it was a moment to hold onto in their hearts forever.

The rain was ending and the sun had begun to reappear in the sky. A ray of light shone in through the open window towards the floor. In the room was a boy, no older than the age of seven, lying on a cold white bed. The boy was exceptionally slim and a tad too short for his age at a height of a mere forty inches. He wore a sky blue gown made of cotton and an ivory white bracelet with an inscription. As for what the inscription said, it is unknown for the inscription in question had been worn away for quite some time prior to this occasion. The gown, a bit too large for the boy, was short sleeved and ran all the way down to his knee. Although he felt the gown comfortable, the boy despised it as it was much too thin and revealing for the frosty winters; however, on a warm summer day such as this one had been, it was perfect.

The boy took a glance out the window into that strange world that he'd never once set foot into before. The remnants of the rainfall still remained: the flower pot on the balcony held onto the leftover drops of rain preciously as if they were a gift from the heavens, the [i]pitter-patter[/i] of the drops falling down onto the railing could be heard clearly, and most importantly of all in the grey and still cloudy sky a miraculous arrangement of colors could be made out. The boy's eyes were dazzled, for it was the first time he had ever seen a rainbow. How was it possible that such a beautiful thing could exist? The boy called out, "Sis! Sis! Isn't it amazing?"

Sitting beside the boy in a grey chair made of stainless steel was a young woman. Although the creases under her eyes formed from a countless number of sleepless nights allowed her to pass as older, her age had to be around fifteen or sixteen. The young woman, putting on a smile, looked at the delicate boy with soothing eyes. She rubbed his hair and slowly, gently whispered, "Yeah, I've never seen anything like it." She desolately wondered and desperately asked the God in the heavens, [i]"Why? What has this child done to deserve this? He's but the happiest child this god-forsaken place has even seen. Mother, Father if you were here what would you do?"[/i]

The sunlight shining on him made him look even more miraculous than he was before. A smile rose on his face and his incomplete set of teeth were brilliantly glistening. For the young woman, there was no other way to describe this scene than by saying that an angel had descended and was in her midst. She tried, and tried, but it was to no avail. Breaking into tears, she held the boy closely to her. Confused, the boy asked, "Sis, what's wrong? Who made you cry? I'll punish them for you." The young woman, straining to smile, weakly replied, "Nothing, nothing's the matter." Becoming even more confused the boy questioned, "Then why are you crying, sis?" Still distressed and not able to think of an excuse, she replied in haste, "Silly kid, didn't you know? It's normal to cry after seeing something so beautiful."

The boy pondered the reply made to his question for a brief second then went back to looking out the window. On the street was a group of four or five boys chasing one another. They were having a grand time running around and playing a game of tag. One of the group looked up and saw the boy staring out the window. He called up to the boy, "Ay, didja wanna play too?" The boy, filled with excitement, beseeched his sister, "Please, please? Just this once, can I go play?" As always the young woman replied, "You know that you can't, Edward." Again the boy pleaded, "Please? I'll work harder on my multiplication table this week." As there was no reply from the young woman, the boy said to the group, "No, I'm not allowed to." A voice from below replied before running off once again, "Yee, alrightie then, 'til next time."

It was then that a voice called out from the hallway. "Miss, it's time", called an elderly woman holding a clipboard with both hands. The young woman nodded to confirm that she understood and took her brother by his hand outside of the sheer white room. "Slower," the boy said, "Could you walk a bit slower? My legs feel a bit weak today." The young woman, shocked that she had forgotten his frailness for even a second, replied, "Of course." They went into the hallway where the man wearing a white coat put the boy on a rolling contraption. The man assured both the young woman and the boy, "He's going to be just fine. Don't worry; we've got the best equipment available."

The man wearing the white coat took the boy into a room with sign above of it that would soon be illuminated. That dreadful room and the fear striking red sign, the young woman couldn't stop thinking about them. The young woman wondered of the result, was it possible that he was going to leave her too? [i]"No, no, no", she thought, "it isn't possible. Only the best of the best are allowed to work here. He'll be fine. Just fine."[/i] The young woman nervously, anxiously awaited the man wearing the white coat for hours upon hours until the illuminated light turned off. Slowly the twin metal doors were pushed opened and the man wearing the white coat came out, except the coat wasn't exactly white anymore. It had been stained with a crimson red of a cherry. The young woman rushed towards him and grabbed his shoulders. Not being able to contain her anticipation she cried out, "What happened? Is he alright?" The words of the man wearing the white coat would stay with her forever.

[i]"The operation was successful, however..."[/i]