Robert James Waller

The film is set in the summer of 1965. It tells the story of Francesca, a lonely, insightful Italian Iowa housewife. While her husband and children are away at the Illinois State Fair, she meets and falls in love with a photographer who has come to Madison County, Iowa to create a photographic essay for National Geographic on the covered bridges in the area. The four days they spend together are a turning point in her life and she writes of her experience in a diary which is discovered by her children after her death.

After reading The Bridges of Madison County, Marge decides that she and Homer need to teach the kids about romance. Each of the Simpsons (using clips from previous episodes) reminisce about past romantic encounters, leaving them all depressed and believing that love does not work. However, Homer saves the day by pointing out that one relationship has succeeded, his and Marge's.