Semi-autobiographical account of Arthur's life growing up in what started out as 'the country' but evolved into Suburbia Americana, the changes causing tension in all her relationships as she rejects the "Suburban model" and develops despair over what is happening to the land around her. A funny, raw, poignant coming-of-age story that takes the reader from the mid-west to California and a lot of points in between and includes how to deal with loss, grief, and the possibility of new love, the possibility of a new life dedicated to the idea that the human species can do better.