Lila, homeless and alone after years of roaming the countryside, steps inside a
small-town Iowa church-the only available shelter from the rain-and ignites a ro
mance and a debate that will reshape her life. She becomes the wife of a ministe
r and widower, John Ames, and begins a new existence while trying to make sense
of the days of suffering that preceded her newfound security. Neglected as a tod
dler, Lila was rescued by Doll, a canny young drifter, and brought up by her in
a hardscrabble childhood of itinerant work.
