Have you ever wondered what really goes on at your child's day-care center after you say good-bye? Harriet Brown did. To satisfy her curiosity, she spent a year observing Red Caboose, a center in Madison, Wisconsin. This engaging and thought-provoking book is the story of that year.In her beautifully written personal account, journalist and mother Brown takes us behind the scenes at a day-care center that works. At Red Caboose, one of the oldest independent centers in the country, we meet teachers who have worked with young children for more than twenty years. We watch the child-care union and parents struggle to negotiate a contract without tipping apart the fabric of trust and love that holds the Red Caboose community together. Best of all, we get to know the children, families, and teachers of Red Caboose -- their struggles, their sorrows, their triumphs.Brown sets her rich and engaging stories in the greater political and social context of our time. This book is a must-read for parents, educators, and anyone who enjoys first-rate writing and dead-on insight into the lives of our youngest children and those who care for them.