When Woodrow's mother suddenly disappears, he moves to his grandparents' home in a small Virginia town where he befriends his cousin and together they find the strength to face the terrible losses and fears in their lives. Woodrow's cousin, Gypsy, lives next door, and the two children find they have much in common. But unlike Woodrow, who has accepted his mother's disappearance, Gypsy can't get over her father's death. That's when Woodrow tells Gypsy the truth about his mother. Twelve-year-old Gypsy struggles to understand the mystery of her Aunt Belle's sudden disappearance, and why her cousin, Woodrow, Belle's son, is acting so calm. When Woodrow finally reveals that he is keeping a secret about Belle, Gypsy begins to realize that people have different ways of facing the often painful truth of things.