Raised in a chaotic, ever-changing home by her imaginative but alcoholic father and artistic but often depressed mother, Jeannette Walls has never truly known stability. As she moves around the country with her family, she faces poverty, confusion, near homelessness and bullying by classmates who do not understand her circumstances. However, Jeanette's father always tries to inspire hope for the future in his children, even though he is largely responsible for the upheaval and uncertainty in their lives. And Jeanette holds those dreams for the future close, through good times and bad.
