This book follows a group of girls from graduation at Vassar through seven years when they all gather together for the funeral of one of their own. Each girl is different in her own way and each girl is devoted to the idea that they're not going to be stuffy like "mom and dad". It was a big deal back when it was written because one of the girls was a Sapphist (which is a nice way of saying lesbian) who was in love with one of the other girls in the group, even if she never said so. This is, incidentally, the freest member of the group, so there you go. In a lot of ways it was ridiculously ahead of it's time. The prose sticks with you like a lot of classic literature and McCarthy isnt' afraid to completely skewer something if she thinks it needs it. Definitely read this book to see how far we've come and how far we've yet to go. But mostly read it because it's an amazing read that'll leave you wanting more.