Summary

A future version of Sunday narrates to the reader that it was three years ago that she met Vita. Sunday lives with her teenage daughter Dolly in the Lake District of England. It is the 1980s, and though scientists do not have the words or research to diagnose most people with it yet, Sunday is autistic (though she does not know what that is or means). Because of this, Sunday and Dolly live a very quiet life. Some aspects of Sunday's autism are that she only eats white foods and is fascinated with Sicilian folklore. Dolly does exceedingly well in school, and is hoping to study Maths at Cambridge.

Shortly after Dolly goes to school one day, Vita knocks on Sunday's door and introduces herself. She and her husband, Rols, are staying in a house owned...