Content Warning: In general, Spilled Milk contains graphic descriptions of physical and sexual abuse against a child (specifically incest), drug use, and suicide. Chapters 6-7, in particular, are especially graphic.

K. L. Randis begins her memoir Spilled Milk, which is written using the pseudonym Brooke Nolan, with a scene from the waiting room before her final court hearing. After a year of legal battles, Brooke is awaiting the final verdict for her father’s trial. Brooke is 19 and in her second year of college. She studies chemistry and thinks about the note cards in her pocket as she looks around at her mother and extended family. Molly, Brooke’s mother, has a habit of staring blankly into space when she’s upset, and Brooke admits she does the same thing. Brooke’s victim advocate Heather, an Irish woman like her, tries to placate Brooke during a stressful process and explains all of the legal proceedings. Brooke is aware of lawyers and secretaries as they pass by, who seem to view her as a child and have no idea why she is present.