As daughter of the blacksmith in her tiny Irish village, fifteen-year-old Kitty Doyle knows little of the ways of the world, but she has to grow up fast when her widowed father re-marries and she has no choice but to leave the family home. Luckily there's work to be found over the water in Liverpool and soon Kitty has a job in a grocer's, where she also catches the eye of the owner. With Kitty's input the business is soon thriving - but tragedy lies ahead, and she must endure many trials and tribulations before she can find true happiness...