A memoir that promises to ignite debate about the legacy of mothers on their daughters. Growing up in London, Ontario, Michelle's relationship with her mother was defined by absence - her mother, Jacqueline, had an high-ranking career in finance and banking, living in Toronto or Ottawa during the work week, returning on the weekend to pick up the familial role much to her daughter's (and husband's) increasing resentment. Jacqueline was fueled by a deeply ambitious drive and a determination to avoid what she saw as the limited and unfulfilling life of her own homemaker mother, who was often hospitalized with bouts of depression. In an attempt to bridge the gap with Michelle, Jacqueline would plan trips for the two of them, which usually had the effect of skyrocketing the tensions instead of drawing the two of them closer. These trips continue today, along with an ongoing string of daily text messages that carry as much subtext as they do text. These trips and texts provide the jumping off point for Michelle Orange to examine her life and how mothers and daughter relate, what one generation passes on to the next, and how deeply young women struggle for identity defined in opposition to the women they are closest to.