Blue Willow

Set in California's San Joaquin Valley, the story follows ten-year-old Janey Larkin, the daughter of migrant farmworkers who follow seasonal harvests. The Larkin family, which left Texas years earlier, has just arrived at a one-room board shack on a scorching day. Janey's father has come to work in the cotton fields, and her stepmother, Mrs. Larkin, scrubs their meager quarters, longing for a decent home. Years of constant moving have taught Janey, an only child, not to get close to strangers.

Across the road, Lupe Romero, a girl Janey's age, crosses over carrying her baby sister Betty, and the two strike up a cautious friendship. Janey shares her most treasured possession: a blue willow plate, an heirloom from her great-great-grandmother that passed to her birth mother, who died when Janey was very small. Its pattern depicts a Chinese love story of lovers who escape across a bridge and transform into white birds. Mrs. Larkin has kept the plate packed in a suitcase, vowing it will not be displayed until the family has a proper home. When Lupe asks how long the Larkins will stay, Janey gives her habitual answer: "As long as we can." As Lupe leaves, she says she hopes the Larkins stay a long time, and Janey feels the warmth of having found her first real friend.

Mr. Larkin earns two dollars working in the cotton fields and tells Janey they will stay as long as they can, preferring the shack to the cotton camp. He reveals that Mom has been unwell and needs rest. A week later, Lupe invites Janey to the free children's day at the Fresno county fair, and Mrs. Larkin gives Janey a nickel, her first money of her own. At the fair, Janey lingers at a liberty booth set up like a living room and heaped with children's books while the Romeros ride the merry-go-round. Lupe wins a free ride and offers it to Janey, who refuses out of pride but accepts when she recognizes the friendship behind the gesture.

Soon after, Bounce Reyburn, the foreman for landowner Nils Anderson, arrives at the shack demanding five dollars a month in rent. Janey dislikes him on sight. Mr. Larkin insists on a signed receipt before paying, and Bounce warns them not to contact Anderson directly.

On a day off, the family walks to the nearby river and fishes under the willows. Dad expresses contentment but adds that they will stay only as long as there is work. While her parents nap, Janey walks downstream, crosses an old wooden bridge, and discovers a ranch house shaded by three great willows. The scene resembles the willow plate. Bounce emerges from the barn, accuses her of stealing, and orders her away. Furious, Janey attacks him. Anderson rides up and intervenes, treating Janey kindly and letting her collect eggs. Janey becomes convinced the ranch is where the willow plate belongs. She says nothing about her family living in the shack, sensing Bounce does not want Anderson to know.

In October, Janey begins attending Camp Miller, the migrant camp school near the cotton fields. She resents it because she wants to belong to the community, not be marked as an outsider. She bonds with her teacher, Miss Peterson, who wins Janey's trust by naming her captured horned toad Fafnir, after a mythological dragon. Janey loses herself in a copy of King Arthur from a county library truck.

The Wasco County Cotton Picking Contest arrives, and Mr. Larkin competes over nine grueling hours with Manuel Romero, Lupe's father, serving as his helper. Mr. Larkin finishes second, winning seventy-five dollars. The family buys essential supplies, eats at a restaurant, and purchases Janey's first new coat.

As autumn deepens, wild ducks settle on a nearby slough, and their faithful return gives Janey a sense of constancy. One morning she sneaks to watch them. Bounce appears with a shotgun to hunt, and Janey scares the birds into flight. The camp school closes, and Janey says a difficult goodbye to Miss Peterson.

In December, Mom catches a severe cold that worsens into pneumonia. She refuses to see a doctor because they cannot spare the money. Janey takes the willow plate and walks a mile through the fog to Dr. Peirce's office, offering it as payment. The gruff but kind doctor refuses the plate and comes immediately. Mom slowly improves.

Mid-month, Bounce arrives to collect rent. Dad cannot pay; the cotton work is over, and they must save their money for food. The two men square off until Mom calls from her sickbed, warning that a fight will only get Dad arrested. Janey offers the willow plate as rent. Bounce takes it, planning to trade it later for the signed receipts that prove his embezzlement. Janey is devastated, but Mom takes her hand and reveals she has always understood what the plate meant.

Miss Peterson, now teaching at the district school, visits with groceries and offers to enroll Janey. But Dad announces they must leave for the Imperial Valley; the work is gone. On the final afternoon, Janey walks to the Anderson ranch to see the plate one last time. When she asks Mr. Anderson about it, he is puzzled; he knows nothing about any rent or any plate. Janey explains everything, and Anderson is shocked to learn Bounce has been pocketing rent money.

Anderson visits the Larkin shack, examines the signed receipts, and learns of Larkin's background as a stockman. He fires Bounce and offers Mr. Larkin the foreman's job: seventy-five dollars a month, a house on the ranch, and all the eggs and milk the family can use. Mr. Larkin, too moved to speak, silently shakes Anderson's hand.

The Larkins move into the tank-house on the ranch, a small dwelling where Bounce had lived. Inside, Janey finds the willow plate, recovered when Anderson dismissed Bounce. Anderson also returns the rent money, and Mom insists it go to pay Dr. Peirce. Mom refuses to display the plate until they have a real house.

By mid-January, the family has transformed. Janey attends the district school and grows healthier with regular food. Mom smiles readily, and Dad carries himself with new confidence. In spring, Manuel Romero leads a crew to build an adobe house for the Larkins under a willow near the old bridge. Janey realizes the house will recreate the willow plate's scene: a bridge, a willow, a house, and three people.

Janey is chosen to dance in the May Day festival. During the May Pole dance, she dedicates turns to Mom and Dad, and on the final turn, she dances for Bounce Reyburn, acknowledging that his very meanness led to their good fortune.

When the Larkins return home, Janey finds the new house furnished. On the mantelpiece above the fireplace sits the willow plate, finally displayed in a proper home. Two tears run down her cheeks. She turns to Mr. Anderson and asks how long they can stay. He answers: "As long as you want to, Janey." Janey asks Lupe to repeat the question she asked at their very first meeting. Lupe obliges, and Janey delivers the answer she has longed to give her whole life: "As long as we want to."