Lisa Alther reels through the ups and downs of Ginny Babcocks coming of age in Hullsport, Tennessee, during the 50s and 60s. Ginny bounces from one identity to another,adopting the values, politics, lifestyle, even the sexual orientation of each new partner. In her wise, funny, and ultimately heartbreaking story, Alther explores the limited roles offered to women in the 60s -- from cheerleader to motorcycle moll, bulldyke to madonna -- each embodying important truths about the aspirations of the culture that created them. Althers artful tale takes the reader into the heart and mind of an intense heroine who joins the ranks of Holden Caulfield, Jane Eyre, and Stephen Daedalus.