Young Abbie struggles to cope with the traumatic experiences in her life. Ripped from everything familiar after her parents’ divorce, she is dropped into an unknown neighborhood and is emotionally abandoned by her mentally unstable mother. Abbie is caught up in the cruel nature of one sister’s addictions and is often rescued by her other sister’s love and sense of familial responsibility.

The story reveals family secrets and the shift of cultural norms as it leaves the 1970s and enters the 1980s.

Surrounded by uncertainty, Abbie struggles with being able to open herself to the other, more stable adults in her life as she seeks guidance through difficult circumstances. School and competitive sports offer escape, new physical confidence, and friendship.

As Abbie matures, her ability to take chances and trust others is challenged. Some chances play out to her advantage, and some do not. The path to self–reliance is often lonely or disorienting for her. She discovers whom to trust and whom she can’t depend upon for support.

It’s a long, hard fight for Abbie to break free of what she dubs the "three–ring circus" of her tumultuous emotions, but greater maturity and love with the man she has always wanted liberate her at last.