Jean

Jean's story begins when she is seven, though she tells the story of her mother's search for a child that she knows is to be her own. She finds Jean in an orphanage and adopts her. Jean is raised in the church and later says that she's surrounded with strong women, meaning that she had no inkling that women were not meant to be strong. At seven, Jean is singled out by a pastor who says that parents should keep an eye on their children because even children can be possessed by demons.

Jean is educated at home and her mother uses the Bible as almost her sole teaching tool. Jean is constantly quizzed on Biblical stories so that she can do well on the church quizzes. She notes that her mother likes it when Jean wins. Then Jean is forced to attend public school. Initially, she's excited...