"Lucy Barton is recovering slowly from what should have been a simple operation. Her mother, to whom she hasn't spoken for many years, comes to see her. Gentle gossip about people from Lucy's childhood in Amgash, Illinois, seems to reconnect them, but just below the surface lie the tension and longing that have informed every aspect of Lucy's life: her escape from her troubled family, her desire to become a writer, her marriage, her love for her two...

Boris and Marie have decided to separate after fifteen years together. However, cash-strapped Boris is still living in the family home. When all is said and done, neither of the two is willing to give up. Now this apartment is a war zone and their situation a nightmare.