It is a Saturday in 1939, and 10-year-old Selina Boyce lives in a rented Brooklyn brownstone house on Chauncey Street with her father, mother, older sister, and two boarders. Silla Boyce, Selina’s mother, is obsessed with getting the down payment she needs to buy their brownstone, but Deighton Boyce, Selina’s father, is content to rent. Deighton’s dream is to return to Barbados and build a big house for his family. His relationship with his wife is so tense that the two sleep separately, and Silla complains bitterly about the worthlessness of her husband, who dresses like a dandy and goes off at night to visit his mistress.

One afternoon, Deighton tells Selina a secret: his sister has left him two acres of land back home in Barbados. Deighton allows Selina to share the secret with Beryl Challenor, her best friend, but makes Selina promise not to tell Silla, who will be sure to stop Deighton from fulfilling his dream of returning home in style. Selina goes out to play with Beryl, and she returns home just in time to get cleaned up for Silla, who always “[brings] the theme of winter” (22) with her wherever she goes.