Summary

Chapter 8

After spending a few minutes with Maurice's mother, Laura discusses her own family for this chapter. She questions what makes an unfit mother.

(Flashback) As she remembers stories told to her when she was a child, she recalls that her mother told her that her great grandmother, had her children taken away in Italy because she couldn't provide for them. Her husband had been drafted into the army.

She follows the family line down to her own family living in America. Again, she tells the reader about the abuse her family suffered at the hands of her father. In one instance, the children were wakened one night by his furious yelling. Then, there was the sound of broken glass. Laura and her sister, Annette, shared a bedroom, and Annette talked her into going to make sure her father hadn’t thrown their...