When shipwright Alex Burnside and his family finally move out of Glasgow's tenements and into the new suburb of Flannery Park, they are filled with hope at their new prospects for a better life.But tragedy soon strikes, and when the Depression subsequently spreads to Glasgow, the Burnsides find times even tougher - and more complicated - than they ever imagined.No one feels the effects of the rapid-fire changes more than seventeen-year-old Alison, a keen student who suddenly finds herself the woman of the house. Caught between her family and the longed-for possibility of university, Alison turns for support to her teacher and mentor, Jim Abbott, only to realize that they both want more than friendship.In a society where success can be almost as much of a disaster as failure, Alison finds that she must choose at last between love and loyalty, between marriage and self-fulfillment.