It is an older book, out of print now, but the author was ahead of her time in some ways in portraying the complexity of her characters. Some of our book club members had a hard time getting into the book, the language in some cases is working class of the 30's and so it takes getting used to. But overall, the characters are well-developed and grow with the story. It was hard not to hate Maggie Rowan, the character, and at the same time, feel a tremendous amount of sympathy.