Annie Winston and her brothers have been surrounded by wealth and prestige all their lives as a part of the upper class, NYC society. But, as their mother says, "They don't know how to dream." When she dies, their father seizes upon an opportunity to uproot his family and move them to a farm in the Mississippi Valey near Dubuque, Iowa, a place that is unlike anything they have ever imagined. A mysterious stranger, Sonny, is employed to assist them with this enormous undertaking.

This family saga is written against the backdrop of the global turmoil of the last three years of the Vietnam War in the early 1970's, causing the family to grapple with conflicting attitudes and ideologies. They live, they work, they love, and they cry while learning the meaning of perseverance and loyalty while gaining a greater understanding of self-worth and decency. Like Annie says, "We have each planted a piece of ourselves in this place and the roots have grown much deeper than any of us expected."