Emancipated by their owner's will, thirteen-year-old Evie and her father struggle to gain Mama's freedom and to make a home for themselves in the pre-Civil War South.
Living with her family in the farming town of Palouse, Washington, during World War II, thirteen-year-old Josie worries about her brother's strange behavior and wonders why he has not enlisted.
In 1932, when her father's foot injury makes it impossible for him to do farm work for a while, thirteen-year-old Agnes steps in, proving herself and revealing her understanding of him.
When her wounded brother returns from battle, twelve-year-old Mary must get help for him without telling her father, a wealthy Tory, who has disowned his son for joining General Washington's Continental Army.
In Texas in 1886, Ellen finds her desire to be a cattle rancher discouraged by family members who do not think it a proper choice for a girl, but she proves her worth when drought threatens the ranch.
In 1847, when her mother's remarriage sends them on a difficult journey to California, Willow is swept overboard fording the South Platte River and must survive and search for her family.