Mary Sullivan was born illegitimate, and partially blind. She was adopted from a Catholic orphanage by a fanatical, middle aged couple, with no children of their own. Because of MRS. Sullivan's health problems, and her inexperience with small children, Mary was volleyed back and forth between the infant home, and her adopted home. Mary had bonded with one of the nuns, and preferred the infant home to the Sullivan home. This caused a lot of anger, and resentment, resulting in years of physical, verbal, and psychological abuse. Mary was set along a path of institutions, and more abuse. When she was twelve Mary was diagnosed as semi autistic. Because of this, and her compulsion to run away, she wound up in a very controversial treatment center up North. Then at age seventeen Mary received her big break when she was enrolled in The Perkins School for the blind, in Massachusetts. She fell in love with the school, but her emotional scars from her past got in the way frequently. After two years Mary reluctantly graduated, and stumbled head long in to the adult world, not knowing what she was doing. This book is for people who have been beaten down by the system, but not beaten.