Content Warning: The novel contains anti-Indigenous biases and offensive stereotypes. The source text also uses racist slurs and offensive language about Black and Brown Americans.

The novel opens in the winter of 1852. Mary Ellen Todd lives with her family in Arkansas. One night, she wakes up to the sounds of her father Abbott Todd and mother Angelina Todd talking downstairs. She tries to wake her little sister Louvina, but Louvina doesn’t move. Mary Ellen eavesdrops on her parents discussing whether they should move to Oregon. Mary Ellen has heard this conversation before, and many neighbors and strangers have been talking about how beautiful and rich the Oregon valleys and soil are.

Tonight, Father is talking to his cousin Will and the neighbor George Kimball. The men are sharing stories they’ve heard about the dangers of the journey west. Mary Ellen feels scared when she hears them mentioning Indigenous Americans attacking pioneer families and killing women and children. She doesn’t understand why Father would want to move when they have a nice home in Arkansas. Not long ago, they left their old home in Indiana to escape the ague sickness.