When an old woman is asked to tell the story of her life, she tells an intense and poignant tale about growing up in and surviving a warring suburban family during the 1950s and '60s. Written as a memoir, each chapter describes a particular incident in Lucia's life which shows the constant struggle between her parents and the perverse effect it has on her and her family. From her complicated and unwanted birth, to her witnessing a suicide at age 3, to her stint as a runaway at age 14, the story progresses to the final crisis where as a young woman she is turned out of her house and banished...