It is 1936 and Kate Merritt works hard to keep her family together. Her father slowly slips into alcoholism and his business suffers during the Great Depression. As her mother tries to come to grips with their situation and her sisters seem to remain blissfully oblivious to it, it is Kate who must shoulder the emotional load. Who could imagine that a dirty, abandoned little girl named Lorena Birdsong would be just what the Merritts need?

"Parker struggles to reconnect with her twin brother, Charlie, who's recovering from cancer, and to deal with her anxiety about her own future"--

1983, New York. Michael lives in the shadow of his best friends: James, a teen performance artist who everyone wants and no one can have; and Becky, who calls things as she sees them, while doing all she can to protect those she loves. His brother Connor has already been kicked out of the house for being gay. Hanging out at The Echo, Michael can dance and forget about his father's angry words, the pressures of school, and the looming threat of AIDS,...