Nestled in the Great Massasauga Swamp, a place endearingly referred to as 'The Waters' by the Whiteheart, Michigan, locals, resides herbalist Hermine 'Herself' Zook. Known for her powerful concoctions and indomitable will, she commands both admiration and dread from the townspeople, as well as from her own disjointed family. Her youngest daughter, the enigmatic Rose Thorn, lives a life apart from convention, leaving behind her daughter, eleven-year-old Dorothy 'Donkey' Zook, to fend for herself amid nature's untamed beauty and her mathematical pursuits. But as Donkey grows up yearning for a sense of family and harboring a desire for the love of an absent parent, the once-tranquil swamp becomes a stew of hidden familial secrets, all-consuming love, and looming violence. In this fraught environment, the chasms between neighbors grow, filled with silent rage and mutual distrust, with Rose Thorn standing as the sole connection across the divide. Bonnie Jo Campbell crafts a sharp reflection on the tangled undercurrents of a small, rural community, examining the fine balance between the ferocity of nature, the tenacity of human spirit, and the complex tapestry of rural existence.