This is the award-winning story of a young girl growing up on a junkyard in southern Georgia, amid the disappearing longleaf pine forests of the southeastern United States. The author vividly details a childhood that included poverty, religious fundamentalism, and her father's mental illness, but that was also marked by a family's love, colorful characters, brilliance, and through it all, the peace and beauty of nature. In a singular and riveting structure, the book alternates between chapters of memoir and chapters exploring the natural history of the region. The longleaf pine ecosystem is 99 percent gone, transformed into shopping malls, trailer parks, and pine plantations. You will fall in love with the junkyard and with the girl who calls it home, who seeks within it the solace and refuge of the natural world. You will find some of your own childhood within these pages. The book was published in 1999 by Milkweed Editions and has won many recognitions, including the New York Times's Notable Book.