Sandra Yansen must leave behind the close ties of family and village when she leaves to take a job as a reporter in Georgetown, Guyana. She finds the capital riven by racial conflict and the growing subversion of political freedom. Exploring the tensions between personal and political integrity, this novel reflects on the position of women in Guyanese society through Sandra’s passagenbsp;into the male world of the newspaper office, her mother’s frustrations, and the enduring matriarchy of Nurse, Miss K, Noor, and Zena, who are Sandra’s other mothers. Ambitious and focused, this narrative juggles tradition and change as Sandra struggles in her search for independence.