Celia, a young Jewish girl, grows up surrounded by her three spinster aunts, a mother who never stands up for her, and cruel cousins. As she approaches adolescence, Celia is haunted by experiences of childhood emotional and sexual abuse. She's confused about her sexuality-and her self-identity.

Celia eventually realizes she must leave her family far behind if she wants to forget the dysfunctional lessons they unwittingly taught her. She moves cross country to the West Coast, becoming first a children's librarian and then a social worker. And with enduring naivety, she embarks on a...