Seven-year-old Anna adores the constant commotion of her large family in 1970s suburban Chicago. Anna idolizes her ten-year-old sister Liz. Together they make kites, climb trees, and play acrobatic games on their backyard swing set. One moment the two girls are playing-the next, everything changes, and Anna will never be the same. In the constant hubbub of life in a huge family Anna's distress is overlooked, until she completely stops eating at the age of seventeen. Fearing the worst, Anna's mother takes her to see Dr. Ellison, a cool competent psychiatrist, who immediately hospitalizes Anna on the fifth floor of the local hospital. Even under the guidance of Dr. Ellison and the caring staff, Anna is defiant. She trusts no one. She guards the past like her life depends on it. Will she ever share the truth so she can heal?