A beautiful first novel about a young woman growing up the hard way, this is a powerful story of mothers and daughters, their ambiguous alliances, and the search for love and identity. Astrid has been raised by her mother, who is a beautiful, headstrong poet, in a loving but isolated relationship. The two are inseparable until Ingrid murders a former lover and is imprisoned for life. Astrid becomes one of the thousands of foster children in Los Angeles. As she navigates this new reality -- a series of homes, each its own universe, each with its own limits and dangers -- she finds strength in her unshakable certainty of her own worth and her unfettered sense of the absurd. Her fierce determination to find an authentic self and a place to stand in the world makes her a lovable and unforgettable figure in this brilliantly written debut.