The Ones Who Don't Stay takes readers on an inspiring and heartwarming journey from a small Colombian town to life in the fast lane of Los Angeles as a mother and daughter struggle to overcome war, poverty, and heartbreak and learn to survive on their own. This intimate, epic tale begins in the early 1970s with Mariana, the seventeen-year-old daughter of one of the richest and most powerful families in Buga, Colombia, who falls deeply in love with Antonio, the humble son of a fisherman. Cast out by their families, the young couple and their two small children leave behind a country ravaged by a never-ending war, seeking a better life in the United States. But their American dream soon turns into a nightmare and, desperate to save her daughter, Mariana must find the strength to make the most painful decision a mother could ever face, before it's too late.