After Daisy returns from the cottage for her hurt foot, she realizes that her mother has given away one of her most precious gifts, an Egyptian spoon given to her by a close friend. Daisy confronts her mother only to be told "Do not oblige me to remind you that your things are mine." Daisy knows that her mother has always favored her brother. She resolves to be free of her, but can she do so without ruining her soul as well?

Susan Warner is the first author to sell one million copies for a single title of work, the title of which was Wide, Wide, World.