Set in San Francisco following the turn of the century, this story of a Norwegian family’s survival in the New World is told in retrospect by the eldest daughter, Katrin, a successful writer recounting the start of her career and the childhood that inspired it. She takes us back to relive familial hardships and triumphs including the near loss of their home, Papa’s desperate return to Norway when he could no longer find work, and the sale of her first story – – this one. But, of course, it’s Mama she remembers most of all, always guiding their precarious journey with a firm hand and a warm heart.