"Look, Mom! I'm snortin' coke!" five-year-old Bridey giggles, dangling a cocktail straw from her nose over a Coca-Cola. Raised in the rebellious and indulgent '70s and '80s by a mom addicted to dangerous men who park their Harley-Davidsons in the house, Bridey is both her mother's protector and punching bag. Forced to change schools every time her mom moves in another monster-or runs away from one-Bridey stuffs her life into black trash bags she hauls between Alaska and California. When she graduates from her twenty-second school and earns her way into a private college, she tries to forget she's her mother's daughter-until a phone call reminds her, dropping her to her knees. Watching with police and doctors as her mom screams behind protective glass, Bridey realizes that her mother has become the monster and doesn't want to be saved. But Bridey does. Harrowing and tragic, hopeful and triumphant, Bright Eyes relives the resilience, optimism, and bravery that children develop to not only survive their monsters but also learn how to live without them.