At the age of thirteen, Gerri Oxley has come home to stay after having lived her entire life in institutions for the mentally handicapped. That day her twelve-year old brother Neil, the narrator of this novel, knows that his own life has changed forever. "It's not going to be easy," his father had said, but neither Neil nor his parents could have foreseen just how difficult it would be for all of them and in how many ways Gerri would change their lives. Their trials and defeats, but eventual triumph, are related realistically yet with a powerful compassion and a great deal of humor."It is just impossible to stop reading this touching, surprisingly amusing and important story." - Publishers Weekly