The book is divided into four sections of Willa Drake's life, with each section telling about major events in Willa's life.
The first section is 1967 when eleven year old Willa's mother disappeared for several days. Her mother had left home before in a rage, but never more than overnight. Willa's father always excused his wife by saying she was overtired or high-strung. Willa would often make excuses for her mother's rages, too. Willa would think:
"She wasn't always angry. She had lots of good days."
The next section is 1977. Willa was in college, her boyfriend was good-looking and popular (the senior class president) and he wanted to go home with Willa over spring break to meet her parents. As it turned out, he had Willa's life all planned out for her.
Next was 1997 and Willa's husband died in an accident, leaving her with their two high school age boys, trying to figure out her new life.
More than half of the book takes place in 2017. Willa wasn't very close to her boys. She and her new husband had moved to Arizona away from her friends and she, again, was trying to figure out her life. One day she got a call from a stranger on the East coast. Her oldest son's ex-girlfriend was in the hospital and someone needed to come and care for the woman's nine year old daughter. Willa had never met either one of them, but she somehow felt that she needed to go. As she became involved in their lives and those of the neighbors, Willa experienced what real connection with others was like. And that is where Willa finally was able to become her true self.
This novel is a great story of finding oneself, hope and beginning again.
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