In the 1950s, Ellie and Brick are teenagers in love. A basketball star, Brick has the chance to escape his abusive father and be the first person in his blue-collar family to go to college. But after Ellie becomes pregnant, they marry. Ellie gives up her dream of nursing school, and Brick gets a union card instead.

This riveting novel tells the story of Brick, Ellie, and their daughter Samantha. It illuminates the issues facing working-class families and their communities, as it chronicles the evolution of women's lives in America. It also explores how much people know about each other and pretend not to, and the secrets that explode lives.