Exquisite writing! What some previous reviewers don't seem to catch is the "home schooling", apparently par excellence, the three older siblings received during their California days. There was far deeper involvement by the father during their expeditions into the desert. Life for the family changed when they moved to Phoenix and changed even more after they settled in Welch. Maureen was outside the close bond between the older siblings because of the age difference. She truly had no advocate. Walls is superb in her description of the family dynamics.