Ten-year-old Belle Teal Harper lives with her mother and grandmother in a small rural town in the early 1960s. Though they don't have much, Belle Teal feels rich with love and loyalty to her family and her best friends, Clarice and Little Boss.

As a new school year begins, Belle Teal faces unexpected challenges. Her Gran's memory is slipping away. Her mother works longer hours to support the family. Little Boss' troubled relationship with his father is pushing the boy to extremes. And there are two new students in Belle Teal's class: a shy African American boy caught in the center of rampant prejudice, and a new girl whose outward confidence belies the secret she holds close.