Life in the Gerbil Cage

When I opened my computer and found that my friend, Joanna Madonna, had been arrested for murdering her husband, I was astonished. How could that be true? I knew Joanna as an outgoing, creative woman, filled with energy and goodwill. She was a mother, a wife, a teacher, and a musician. She had never suggested that what she showed the world was a cover for what was happening in her marriage. Our friendship deepened during the time she was incarcerated, awaiting trial. This memoir is presented through her letters and my experience of a friendship that is like no other in my life.