Wells, Rebecca

Siddalee Walker, a successful theater director, is thrown into a void of uncertainty when she has a falling out with her mother, Vivi, over a New York Times article in which Vivi is characterized as an abusive parent, and the Ya-Yas, Vivi's gang of lifelong girlfriends, conspire to restore the mother-daughter relationship.

Calla Lily Ponder bursts into life -- guided by Moon Lady, a protective feminine force -- where she thrives in her small Louisiana town until the end of her first love pushes her to Crescent City, where she discovers she has the power of "healing hands" to change lives and end pain.

Siddalee Walker, a successful New York theater director, takes turns with her family in telling the story of their Louisiana upbringing, their experiences in the classrooms of the Penguins of Our Lady of the Divine Compassion, and the anguishes of childhood.

Siddalee Walker, a successful theater director, is thrown into a void of uncertainty when she has a falling out with her mother, Vivi, over a New York Times article in which Vivi is characterized as an abusive parent, and the Ya-Yas, Vivi's gang of lifelong girlfriends, conspire to restore the mother-daughter relationship.

The Walker clan, Vivi and Big Shep; their children Sidda, Little Shep, Lulu, and Baylor; Vivi's long-time girlfriends the Ya-Yas; and neighbors Cheney and Willetta, live out their lives in flamboyant and secretive style in the bayou of Thornton, Louisiana.

Follows the childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood of Vivi, Teensy, Caro, and Necie from the time they first meet in the 1930s through their many experiences and years of friendship.