As a sometime genealogist, I could really relate to the main character's need to understand where she came from and who she was. I also found that the inter-relationships between scientists and artists were believable black and white. I found her mother's "half truths" to be amusing, and wished I thought that "toad in the hole" would be better made with frogs (who were stupid enough not to run away when coated with batter). Read the book to find out why. I love Meg's mother, Valerie! She's awesome, and the redeeming character in this novel. I didn't like Meg for the most part, probably because I veer more towards seeing the world the way Meg's mother does, even though I value and love science. I enjoyed Valerie's explanations of how the world works. For example, the story of how the clouds are held up by the sky, and how the sky is held up by the warmth of people's breaths. For the record, I despised Mark's character from the get-go.