This book is about a family which is really 'poor white trash'. They abuse their children, they steal, have really no ethical compass, and the worst part is that they do not have to be like that, unlike most poor white trash which does not have the intelligence or ability to do better, Yes, it is 'OK' to do 'your thing' - but it is NOT OK to then have children and subject them to the abuse that this family did to theirs.
CPS really did not do their job. The fact that the children did as well as they did is due only to circumstance, and to the fact that they were intellectually gifted. Each chapter is about another 'family problem' due to their own lack of 'drive' and it is really quite boring after a while.......