Willow is ten years old and obsessed with the fear that her mother will die. Her mother, Polly, is a cantankerous, take-no-prisoners Southern woman with a sharp tongue who lives to shoot varmints, and drink margaritas; and she sticks out like a sore thumb among the young mothers of their small Texas town. She was in her late 50s when Willow was born, has already had two children who are grown and gone, leaving Willow hungry for clues about the family life that preceded her. A bittersweet novel about the grip of love in a truly quirky family, featuring two unforgettable characters.