Mattie, A Novel

Mattie has been saving her money for nursing school to escape her abusive father and mentally unstable mother. There are the rare good moments, like working with her boss at the local dime store and teasing with her sister and youngest brother, and her boss even seems to reciprocate Maggie’s hidden feelings for him. But it’s the late 1930s, and Mattie knows that nice guys don’t marry “damaged goods.” She must make her own way in life, and she finds that way when World War II begins; but the war also brings more confusion to her life.