Summary

Chapter 1 opens in Hollywood with Rose’s mother Lane baking her a birthday cake for her ninth birthday. When Rose comes home from school, she asks to help. Her mother tells her no and lets Rose work on her spelling. While her mother does not bake much, she likes to work with her hands. She likes gardening and carpentry. Recently, she had installed a door to Joseph’s room. A contractor helped her with the project. She took time off from an office job to work more with her hands after her husband paid off his law school debt. Rose knows that her parents fought the night before. Lane puts the cake in the oven and tells Rose she is going to go lie down because she has a headache. Rose sneaks a bite of the cake.

In Chapter 2, Rose...