Esther Shapiro/ S Fowler

Esther Shapiro is one of two protagonists of the novel. Along with Lady, she narrates the story for the reader. She is a 22-year-old woman that has just graduated from college in Berkley when the novel starts. She majored in childhood education with a minor in art. She loved children and thought that their ability to use imagination and play to make sense of their world was fascinating, and she had done her senior project on the phenomena.

When she was five years old, her parents got divorced because her mother fell in love with an 18-year-old skateboarder. Her parents split custody 50/50, and Esther spent equal time with both of them. Her father was very loving and present and dependable, while her mother was emotionally abusive and an alcoholic. When Esther was 18, she decided to go to college in Berkley. Her mother accused her of...