Summary

The novel starts with birth of the narrator, Guadalupe Magdalena Molína Vásquez or “Magda” into the arms of her tía Chucha. Thirteen years prior to the beginning of her narration, she returned to her hometown, or “pueblo,” Teatlán, following the failure of her second marriage. As she sits in what was her Tiá’s favorite chair, which Magda has moved and mounted on her roof, she looks back on both her early childhood and her family history, as well as her relationship with the dark virgin, who she calls “Lupa.” Magda’s daughter Martina comes to visit, Martina quickly frustrates Magda...