More a fantasy than a fiction, The Children of Propria’s House depicts a haven for two families of children whose mothers have died, so they have been placed in the care of an amazing foster mother who is an odd bird, indeed. Along with her own daughter, Cameron Cloud, Propria Mason provides the children of the Milano and Everette families, both broken by the destruction of death and dysfunction, with a home unlike any other. For the children of Propria’s house, life is conducted not so much as it is in present day reality but as it could be lived in an environment that is consistently responsible, respectful and considerate by nature. However, the six youngsters, ranging in age from five to nineteen, deal with experiences and emotions that are very much a part of being a young person in the real here and now. In the shelter of Propria’s protective wing, they make their way through a little child’s confusion over her mother’s death and the rage of young girls whose loss of their mothers has left them empty and vulnerable to shame and rage. Under her eagle eye, the children learn to handle sibling rivalry, tangles with truth and temptation, roaring hormones and hungry hearts in a way that brings healing, not more hurt and harm, into the process of growing up into life in the real world. Although they have begun their lives as the children of Propria’s house through the agony of death striking close, this remarkable blended and bonded family works together to build a home that is a nest of nurturing care for the new life growing within it. In doing that, right before the reader’s eyes, they share with us all a word of hope that we can begin again, and do things differently this time.