Winner of the 2011 PEN Literary Award

From Library Journal: "In summer 1969, Atlanta native Frances Ellerby goes to Miami for a wedding and meets not only Dennis DuVal, the man she will marry, but also Marse, a woman who becomes her best friend. The DuVal family owns a beach house on stilts in Biscayne Bay, where Dennis and Frances will spend many of the happiest years of their marriage. Their daughter, Margo, is born, then Frances has several miscarriages. Dennis is a lawyer but grows dissatisfied with his job. The family seems happiest on the water, boating and fishing. Frances never gets over her amazement that her life flourishes in gaudy, exotic Miami. Sometimes she feels she drifted into her marriage, but as the years go by, her deep commitment to family and friends, often tested, is portrayed with emotional depth. She changes before our eyes from a guileless girl to a woman of wisdom. This decades long story of a marriage will appeal to fans of Barbara Bradford, Jodi Picoult, and Sue Miller."