Catherine, recently divorced, comes to live in her grandmother's house and discovers her diary that tells how she raised her sisters, was sent to a sanitarium for tuberculosis, fell in love and how she had changed when she returned home. It allows the granddaughter to see her own patterns of disappointment and compromise in her life and that of her grandmother

It's the start of the summer when Ginny and William Owen's quiet and peaceful life comes to an abrupt halt. First their oldest daughter Lillian shows up with her two children. Next Lillian's younger brother Stephen arrives with his pregnant wife and their visit is extended indefinitely when Jane is put on mandatory bed rest. Finally, Rachael arrives, the youngest sibling who decided to escape New York City and her single life for the summer.