Four women must face their past before they can look to the future...

     In the sleepy Irish coastal town of Avalon, the big house on Willow Street has stood for generations...

Tess Power grew up there, but now, from her cozy cottage shared with teenage son Zach and nine-year-old Kitty, Tess faces a crumbling marriage and a dwindling antiques business.

     Tess’s feisty sister Suki shook Avalon’s dust off her feet years ago but when she unwittingly becomes the focus of a dirt-digging biographer, Suki looks to her sister and the town she vowed to forget...

     Lively, exuberant Mara seeks the sanctuary of Avalon and her solitary Aunt Danae to put her life and her newly married ex behind her. As the village post-mistress, Danae can always be relied upon—but beneath her gentle exterior, she guards her past as carefully as Avalon’s letters and secrets.

     But the big house is up for sale…and with it its memories, especially for Cashel, who returns to the town for the first time in many years with the ghosts of the distant past—and the woman he swore to forget—still haunting him.

Lovable Cathy has been sister, confidante, and best friend to countless fans around the world. She's an Everywoman who experiences frustrations on the job, in her love life, and with her aging parents in much the same way as her real-life counterparts. Yet Cathy always handles everything with aplomb, consistently seeing the funny side of every situation. She's been an inspiration--giving readers infinite reasons to laugh at life's strange realities.

In this celebration of Cathy's 20 years, creator Guisewite shares some of her earliest strips and recollections of Cathy's growth. An advertising copywriter when she first drew the frazzled Cathy in 1976, Guisewite also reflects on how her own life shaped her character and the strip's other personalities--from boyfriends to pets to parents. From fashion challenges to business travel, Guisewite has covered the gamut of life through her indomitable alter-ego, Cathy, and the trip's been pleasurable for everyone.

In Cathy's 20th Anniversary Collection, readers also accompany Cathy on more adventures: Cathy as she listens patiently to her boss rant about how to buy a new car, replying, "Where"s this energy when we want a man to go in a mall?" Cathy as she turns her mother to mush by asking for quality time. Cathy, frustrated from years of trying to find the right man, as she buys a computer just for the on-line romance chat rooms.

Faithful fans who've grown up with Cathy will treasure this 20th anniversary book from Cathy Guisewite.