On the morning of her first day of 10th grade in September 1965, 15-year-old Sophia Clark wakes in her cramped storage-room bedroom on a farm in Prince Frederick, Maryland, covered in welts from nightmares. She wakes her twin younger brothers, Karl and Lu, for chores. Her older brother, Walter, tells her their uncle has still not hired replacement workers, leaving the siblings to manage 50 acres alone after a grueling summer. Sophia collects eggs from 500 hens while remembering the previous school year, when her counselor Mrs. Brown pulled her aside to meet Mrs. Winston from the Prosser Foundation. Sophia was selected to take a placement test for a scholarship to West Oak Forest Academy, an elite boarding school. She left with a brochure that became her secret hope for escape.

At W. S. Brooks High School, the bully, Maxine, and her friends call Sophia “Orangutan” (15) and mimic monkey sounds. For the first time, Sophia snaps back with a sharp retort. In her advanced chemistry class, she is summoned to see Mrs. Brown, who reveals that Sophia was accepted to West Oak Forest Academy. Two letters were mailed to her house, and Mrs. Brown spoke to Sophia’s mother when Sophia was away from the farm. Mrs. Brown gives Sophia a gift bag with necessities and tells her to get to the school by the next morning. As Sophia leaves, Mrs. Brown calls after her, advising her to do something with her hair.

In July 1950, Ethel Gathers, a reporter for Baltimore’s Afro-American newspaper and the wife of army officer Bert, rides a train to Lourdes, France, desperate for a miracle to cure her infertility. She clutches a letter from Dr. Burroughs stating she cannot bear children. Her husband suggested she join other army wives on this pilgrimage from Mannheim, Germany. During the journey, she meets Dorothy Hansen, the trip organizer, who lends her a book about being an army wife as a gesture of friendship.

At the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes, Ethel waits in line with pilgrims from around the world. Inside the grotto of Massabielle, she drops Dr. Burroughs’s diagnosis into a glass prayer box and touches the stone wall. A powerful sensation pulses through her, and she hears a voice telling her she has much to offer others. Feeling faint, she staggers out. Dorothy and another African American wife, Julia Jones, notice her distress. After collecting holy water from the spring, Ethel goes to the Basilica alone to pray in gratitude, convinced she has been healed.

Walking home from school, Sophia is elated about her acceptance to West Oak Forest Academy but confused about why Ma Deary never mentioned it. At the dilapidated farmhouse, she finds Ma Deary asleep. Sophia searches a drawer and discovers the opened acceptance letter. When Ma Deary wakes, Sophia confronts her. Ma Deary says they need Sophia on the farm and that she is a “ragamuffin” who will not be welcome at an elite white school. She orders Sophia to harvest corn.

In the cornfield, Sophia rips ears of corn in a rage and screams in frustration. Walter finds her crying and proposes they steal Ma Deary’s car so he can drive her to the school, encouraging her with his faith that God opened this door for her. Though frightened, Sophia agrees. After Ma Deary leaves for the evening, Sophia washes her few clothes. Following Mrs. Brown’s advice to do something with her hair, she finds two boxes of hair dye and decides to color her red hair black for a fresh start.

On Memorial Day 1948 in Philadelphia, Ozzie Philips attends a block party on his last night before leaving for army basic training. Throughout the day, neighbors congratulate him on volunteering. His girlfriend, Rita, appears, and they play checkers while discussing her plans to become a lawyer. She is motivated by the Ku Klux Klan’s murder of her uncle, Maceo Snipes. Maceo was shot after becoming the first “Negro in Taylor County to vote” (39).

Harold Lowery, a local rival, arrives with friends and provokes Ozzie by flirting with Rita. When Harold uses a racist slur, Ozzie punches him. His Uncle Millard breaks up the fight and sends him inside, where his mother, Nettie, scolds him for fighting and drinking. She blames his behavior on liquor and makes him promise to stay away from alcohol while in the army, warning that it will be the death of him.

After his mother goes to bed, Ozzie sneaks out to see Rita. In her basement, Rita breaks up with him, saying that four years apart is too long and they should both be free. She frames it as permission for him to fly. She offers Ozzie a goodbye present, and they have sex for the first time.

Before dawn, Sophia sneaks out carrying a suitcase stolen from Ma Deary’s closet. Walter has hidden the Rambler in a clearing after pushing it in neutral to avoid waking the household. He notices her newly dyed hair, commenting that he liked it the way it was before. They drive to West Oak Forest Academy, where the wealth and grandeur overwhelm Sophia. She panics and begs Walter to take her home, but he refuses, gives her a dollar, and makes her get out.

In the administrative building, a cold receptionist asks for Sophia’s birth certificate, which she does not have. The receptionist agrees to let her settle in, but warns that the document is required. She asks another student, Patty, to show Sophia to her dorm, but Patty refuses, stating her parents forbid her from talking to “any of the Negro students” (53). The receptionist gives confusing directions and mutters about desegregation as Sophia leaves.

Sophia finds W5 dormitory and meets her friendly roommate, Wilhelmina “Willa” Pride. Willa informs Sophia that they are the first two “Negro girls to ever attend Forest” (55), joining three African American boys who started the previous year. Sophia unpacks, worried that Ma Deary will discover she is gone and come to take her home.

The morning after the block party, Uncle Millard drives Ozzie to the train station. During the drive, Millard reveals that he killed a man for sexually assaulting Ozzie’s mother, Nettie, and then fled to Philadelphia, changing his name. He warns Ozzie to control his temper. Ozzie completes basic training at Fort Dix and then boards a transport ship at the New York Port of Embarkation. The boarding lines are segregated by race.

Onboard, Sergeant First Class Marshall informs the Black soldiers that due to overcrowding, they will be quartered in the cramped mess hall with 33 men sharing two washbasins, two shower stalls, one urinal, and one seated toilet. On the segregated weather deck marked “Coloreds Only” (62), Ozzie meets three Army nurses—Clara Thompson, Della, and Celestine—along with fellow soldiers Thomas Morgan and Melvin Thornton. As the ship pulls away from port, Ozzie breathes in the salty air, feeling a sense of freedom.

In April 1951, Ethel attends an army wives’ tea at Dorothy Hansen’s house to discuss supporting the Women’s Army Corps. Seeing Dorothy’s children and their achievements intensifies Ethel’s longing for a child. In the bathroom, she discovers she has gotten her period, dashing her hope that she is pregnant. Devastated, she leaves the party early.

Wandering the streets of Mannheim, Ethel gets lost. She sees two Catholic nuns leading a line of biracial children and follows them to St. Hildegard’s children’s home. Sister Ursula, who speaks English, explains that the orphanage cares for abandoned children of German mothers and American fathers who are ostracized and rarely adopted. Ethel recalls the voice from Lourdes and realizes this may be her calling. She offers to volunteer. Sister Ursula gratefully accepts and invites her to return the next day.

Ozzie is severely seasick in the ship’s infirmary. Clara Thompson tends to him. After three days, she helps him to the weather deck for fresh air. Clara tells him about her previous service in the Six Triple Eight Central Postal Directory Battalion during World War II.

The ship arrives in Bremerhaven, Germany, after 18 days. The platoon is bused to the Kitzingen Basic Training Center for “Negro Troops” (77). After the soldiers take an aptitude test, Lieutenant Lonnie W. Hill announces President Truman’s Executive Order 9981, which mandates desegregation of the Armed Forces. The soldiers erupt in celebration.

That night, Ozzie, Morgan, and Thornton go to a local club to celebrate. Keeping his promise to his mother, Ozzie drinks club soda. A group of drunk white soldiers enters and harasses the Black soldiers and German women. Their leader uses a racist slur and accosts a woman at the bar. Ozzie steps in to protect her. The bartender threatens the white soldiers with a bat, and they leave. The celebratory atmosphere is ruined, and Ozzie is filled with rage.

Sophia is awed by Willa’s extensive wardrobe, which contrasts sharply with her few hand-me-down clothes. She changes into her school uniform, which fits perfectly. In her afternoon classes, her teachers are polite, but some students are dismissive. The physics teacher, Ms. Meacham, mistakes Sophia for Willa before calling her “the other one” (86). A friendly girl on crutches named Nancy introduces herself.

After class, Willa tells Sophia that Claude Portis, one of the African American boys, was bullied by football players on his first day. In the dining hall, a kind cafeteria worker, Miz Peaches, gives Sophia a generous plate. Louis Clark, another Black student, joins them. After noting their shared last name, they find no immediate family connection. Louis shares his own story of facing racism and advises that excelling academically is the best response.

At the mandatory sports fair, basketball coach Alastair Fletcher recruits Sophia, telling her that farmwork has made her strong and fit. Later, Sophia waits until the communal shower is empty to avoid showing anyone the welts on her arms. As she leaves, Patty and two other girls mock her nightgown and hair. Hurt, Sophia flees to her room. In bed, she prays to “Walter’s God” for the first time, asking for an end to her nightmares and bullying.

The next morning, Ethel wakes early, excited to return to St. Hildegard’s. She packs hair supplies and stops at the commissary for ribbons and rubber bands. At the orphanage, Sister Ursula greets her warmly. A little girl named Anke immediately climbs into Ethel’s lap. Ethel sets up an outdoor salon and spends the morning styling the younger girls’ hair, using strawberry licorice to coax them to sit still. When older children return from school, she styles two girls whose hair the nuns have crudely cut short.

Later, Ethel plays hand games with the children in the courtyard. When it is time to leave, the children surround her, clinging to her. Anke and several others begin crying “Mummy” (101). The sound devastates Ethel. Sister Ursula pulls the children away so she can leave, and Ethel promises to return the next day. That evening, she tells Bert about her experience. He notices how happy and alive she seems, saying she has found her purpose. He promises to visit after returning from a field exercise lasting a week or two. While washing dishes, Ethel is haunted by the children calling her “Mummy” (101).

A week after the desegregation order, Lieutenant Hill summons Ozzie to his office and reveals that he achieved a perfect score on his aptitude test. Hill transfers him to Sullivan Barracks in Mannheim for a maintenance position. Ozzie requests intelligence but is told he can apply for reclassification later. He and Morgan, who also tested well, are assigned to a two-man room, a significant upgrade. Ozzie is disappointed with his motor pool assignment.

During a supply distribution mission in a German village, a woman asks Ozzie for medicine for her sick father. He retrieves acetaminophen from a first-aid kit. His white superior, First Sergeant Tom Petty, catches him and accuses him of misconduct for being alone with a local woman. The next day, Petty berates Ozzie and assigns him to mess hall duty for the weekend.

Angry and frustrated, Ozzie agrees to go out with Morgan and other soldiers to the Federal Eagle Club. He breaks his promise to his mother and drinks beer, feeling he has earned it. He gets into an argument with a waitress, taking his frustrations out on her, then realizes she is the woman from the village. Feeling guilty, he apologizes and buys a bottle of liquor to share. The next night he returns to the club and the waitress, Jelka, is off duty. They drink and dance together. At closing time, Jelka asks Ozzie to walk her home and stay the night. They go to a room in a boarding house and have sex.