It's the summer of 1987, and Diamond Newberry is learning how to drive. Ever since her Pop disappeared, she and her mother hitchhike everywhere. But that's not the only reason Diamond stands out: she's relentlessly teased about her weight, and she is the only Black person in all of Swift River. But when Diamond receives a letter from a relative she's never met, she is introduced to two generations of African American Newberry women, whose lives reveal a picture of prejudice and abandonment, of love and devotion. As pieces of their shared past become clearer, Diamond gains a sense of her place in the world and in her family. But how will the past change her future?