Jim and Nora Kelly, the school master and mistress, are dedicated to teaching the children despite their own infertility. Nora's twin sister Helen returns home to visit with her four-year-old daughter, Maria, and is killed in a freak road accident, leaving the Kellys to care for the child and hope that she can remain with them. Other characters include Maddy Ross, Father Brian Barry, Michael and Gloria Darcy, Dr. Jims Blake and his son Declan, and Father Gunn and his housekeeper Mrs. Kennedy. The novel ends with the sale of the schoolhouse, with many of the main characters showing an interest in purchasing it. The novel follows a changing Irish society in the 1950s and 1960s. Social barriers that divided families for generations begin to fall, as for example a boy from the lowest socioeconomic class ends up marrying the daughter of an army major. Numerous female characters are also depicted as "strong, independent women of the 1950s [who have] no time for silly romances". The novel was recorded as a BBC audiobook in 2007.