From separate catastrophes two rural families flee to the city and find themselves sharing a great, breathing, shuddering joint called Cloudstreet, where they begin their lives again from scratch. In that big house there's Sam and Dolly Pickles and their three children, and Lester and Oriel Lamb and their brood, including sons Quick and Fish. For twenty years the lot of them laugh and curse until the roof over their heads becomes a home for their hearts. A book of wonder, of compassion, a book of miracles, Cloudstreet is a sprawling saga of tragedy, renewal and affirmation.