How many times can your family let you down?
All the time, if you're Cissy Funk. It's bad enough that her father left the family to find work in Denver. After all, the Depression has hit the Colorado plains hard, leaving nothing but dust and empty farms behind. What makes it all worse is that he left Cissy and her brother alone to take care of their mother, Rose. Cold and Violent, Rose seems to hate Cissy with a passion. What Cissy can't figure out is why.
In the middle of the darkest moment in her life, when Rose leaves bruises on her every day, Cissy's aunt Vera comes to town. Vera is the only bright spot on the horizon. But Vera, too, has her secrets and her troubles. Just when Cissy feels that everything is working out for her at last, her whole world falls apart again. But Cissy Funk is an amazing girl, and she'll use every remarkable ounce of will and spirit she has to make the best out of the worst situation yet.
