This is the vivid, personal account of Tessa Elizabeth Irene Lorant , a keen observer whose early years were shaped by family turmoil, political upheaval, and the challenge of establishing a sense of self against a backdrop of war and exile. The memoir begins in Vienna, 1932 , a time of luxury and quiet complexity at the family villa in Neuwaldegg. Tessa's childhood in Vienna is marked by the presence of her Hungarian engineer father, Papu (Ralph) Lorant , who works for IBM, and her American mother, Mutti (Gissel) . Early on, the dynamics of appearance and self-worth are established, particularly when Papu, upon seeing his newborn second daughter Diana (Dinny) , mutters the German phrase, "Sie hat es auch!" ("She has it too!"). This cryptic remark, linked to Tessa's inherited thinning hair and her father's obsession with looks, becomes a recurring, theme throughout the narrative. She later learns the cause of her hair loss is a faulty dominant gene inherited from her mother. The Refugee's Journey The comfortable but fragile world of Vienna shatters with the looming threat of Nazism, and the memoir chronicles the swift dissolution of the family unit. Her parents have separated, with Papu moving to Geneva for political reasons related to IBM's headquarters relocation. The rise of Hitler is a constant presence, discussed by her mother and her circle of anti-Nazi friends, notably Herr Ingenieur Franz Bosch , editor of the anti-Hitler newspaper Sturm Über Österreich . In 1938, as the situation in Vienna becomes untenable, Gissel is arrested for Espionage, Tessa (aged just 9) and her sister Dinny are thrust into a precarious journey. Their displacement takes them through Budapest, by boat and train to Athens, and then to a temporary home with Papu in Geneva. The War Years in England Tessa and Dinny are eventually sent to live with their mother and Franz Bosch in England, crossing the English Channel and settling in Sussex in late 1938. Wartime England becomes a new crucible for Tessa's independence and intelligence. She quickly masters English, excels academically despite an often chaotic or unsuitable education. New Beginnings The memoir continues as Tessa secures her future. She becomes a US citizen in 1946 through her father's foresight. In 1951, while on a hitchhiking trip across Europe, she meets Jeremy Warburg in Austria. Their immediate connection and shared sense of integrity convince Tessa that he is the man for her. Her decision to follow her heart is solidified by an "extraordinary coincidence": both she and Jeremy are independently offered places to study at the University of Wisconsin for the 1952-1953 academic year. The book ends on this hopeful and exciting note, with Tessa setting off for America and a life built on her own terms, a life where her intellect and spirit would finally triumph over the superficial concerns of her childhood.