Being Fishkill

Carmel Fishkill, who calls herself Fishkill Carmel, has grown up without security, stability, or love. By thirteen, she protects herself with her fists and keeps her secrets from teachers and social workers. Her defenses begin to shift after she meets the optimistic Duck-Duck Farina. Fishkill, Duck-Duck, and Duck-Duck’s mother, Molly, gradually form a tentative family as Fishkill tries to understand where she belongs.