A mosaic of teen chaos, confusion and sexual anarchy is the backdrop for ninth-grader Alison Gepner's search for meaning and first love. A good girl who would rather be seen as an edgy individualist, Alison is surrounded by a crushing teen culture. She faces the fight of her life, just to have a life. The wily schemes of a jealous competitor threaten to take away Alison's connection with the attractive Elijah before she can claim him as her own. The adult world, too, seems to be full of insecure helpers who cling by their fingertips to the illusion of control.