Summary

When Cricket is three years old, Fern and Edgar put her to bed one night and try magic mushrooms. They lose their inhibitions and open up about both missing Ben and being thankful. The next afternoon, Fern receives an acceptance letter from Radcliffe College, to which she had applied after a fight with Edgar about her lack of ambition. She originally wants to show Edgar and Evelyn that she is nothing but a mother, but during the wait period hopes to be accepted.

The family moves to Cambridge, where Edgar will finish his novel and Fern will study. Mary convinces them to move into a brick colonial six-bedroom she buys for them. Fern likes it and Mary loves it, and Edgar hates it but focuses on his novel and his family. Fern has nightmares about Ben, never knowing that Evelyn and Paul have them...