Allie Claybrook has spent the better part of her sixth-grade year as the new kid at Edna Elementary School - a title she is eager to shed. When Ivy Peterson moves to town, Allie quickly becomes her friend. It doesn't hurt that Ivy's older brother, Ty, is the best-looking boy in the seventh grade. But it doesn't help that Celeste - the most popular girl in Allie's class - shares Allie's views about Ty. As Allie deals with her father's deployment to Iraq and Ivy deals with her parents' divorce, the girls discover the importance of friendship and a place to call home.