The story of a woman dancing on the edge of a difficult life Ever since her husband left her-seemingly vanishing into thin air-Charleen Forrest has supported herself and her fifteen-year-old son on what she earns as an obscure poet and part-time gofer for an even more obscure scientific journal. But when her estranged mother remarries, prompting an unplanned reunion, Charleen finds herself moving out of her familiar existence. A dazzling counterpoint to Shields's debut novel, Small Ceremonies, imbued with her scathing wit and dead-on observations, The Box Garden is an unforgettable portrait of a woman who finds transformation-and happiness-where she least expects it.