Rebecca, a black South African girl, loves playing with her new doll alongside her friend Noni, another black girl whose family has lived next to Rebecca's for their entire lives. But, apartheid rules, and the white government plans to seize the family's land, relocate the black township, and build a white suburb in its place. Rebecca and Noni take different paths when Noni's family moves, and Rebecca's father resists and is arrested. Throughout the now-historical novel, Gordon, a white native of South Africa, portrays Rebecca's parents' jobs as laborers and her brother's growing anger with dignity and respect. Rebecca's perspective provides a safe harbor for facing into the complex, heart-rending issues faced by those living under apartheid.