Frances Lacey, Kathy Bates, is a widow who loses her job at a potato chip factory after she is groped by her supervisor and assaults him. The same day, her eldest son Shayne, Edward Furlong, is brought home by the police for stealing change from payphones, but they don’t press charges. Believing Los Angeles isn’t a stable place to raise a family, she packs up the kids, sells what they can’t carry, and drives north in search of a calmer start. When their money dries up, she trades her wedding ring for car repairs, describing her late husband with a hard, unapologetic honesty:
> vagabond Irish Catholic son-of-a-bitch
They reach Hankston, Idaho, where the frame of an unfinished wood house sits across from Moon’s Nursery. The property’s owner, Mr. Munimura, Soon-Tek Oh, agrees to a deal: Frances will work the land and the kids will help, forming what she calls the “Lacey Tribe.” With winter looming, the family throws itself into the work, turning a cold, empty shell into a livable home. Though initially wary, Mr. Munimura warms to the clan and becomes a steady, uncle-like presence for the children.
Frances then finds work as a waitress at a local bowling alley, pouring her earnings back into the house. Shayne takes a job at a dairy, and Murray (the middle son) helps out at a scrapyard, trading labor for practical home improvements. The children—Annie Lacey, Lynn Lacey, and Murray—chip in as best they can, each contributing in their own way to stitch their family back together. At Christmas, the younger ones feel the sting of modest gifts, but Frances’s resolve keeps them moving forward.
Lynn, the eldest daughter, offers a small, meaningful gift: a floral-patterned blouse she saved from a donation bin. The family’s life begins to feel more hopeful, even as the shadow of their old life remains. Shayne, after a difficult encounter at school, falls for a classmate named Raymi, while Frances starts dating her manager, Norman, Tony Campisi. Shayne disapproves of the arrangement, worried that his mother is chasing a dream at the expense of their stability.
One night, as Shayne drives Raymi to a school dance, Norman turns hostile and commits a grave violation: he rapes Frances. As Shayne tends to her injuries, Frances confides that her husband was the only man who ever treated her with real kindness. In a moment of painful, symbolic closure, she nails her late husband’s belt to a tree, a stark reminder of the discipline and life they once shared. Later, Shayne confronts Norman at the bowling alley, but Norman overpowers him, underscoring the peril still surrounding the family.
Feeling trapped, Frances considers quitting the job, but learns Norman has been fired and she’s granted the day off. The Laceys push forward, and in the depths of winter they install indoor plumbing, a practical milestone that signals a new level of security. The family’s momentum is once again tested when Murray, in a moment of reckless mischief, sets fire to the old outhouse—and the flames spread to the house itself. The family loses nearly everything, but Frances discovers their savings stashed away in a jar amid the ashes.
With the worst behind them but debt looming, hope returns when Mr. Munimura arrives with town residents and supplies to rebuild. Frances initially resists the idea, but the community’s generosity convinces her to let the helpers reconstruct the house as it stood, with a firm promise that they will repay every loan. The rebuilding stretches out, but the town’s support never wavers. Six months later the house is finished, and it takes four more years to repay everyone who helped.
In the end, the Laceys are more tightly knit than before, having weathered humiliation, trauma, and loss with collective resolve. Shayne, narrating the closing reflections, recalls that Idaho grew on him despite his initial resistance; he has chosen to stay, never returning to Los Angeles, and carrying forward the lessons of perseverance, family, and the quiet power of community.
- Annie Lacey, Amy Sakasitz plays a part in keeping the family’s warmth alive even as they endure hardship.
- Lynn Lacey, Clarissa Lassig shares in the family’s small, meaningful moments that help them endure.
Their story is one of resilience, where a modest home, a caring neighbor, and a family’s steadfast bond transform hardship into a durable, hopeful future.
