Ila Tremblay’s life drastically changes when her family moves from Winnipeg, Canada, to Thunder Bay due to the Great Depression. Everything seems fine until her father has to flee to California to find work. Will he come back safe, or be gone forever? While everything in life seems to be going wrong, Ila meets an odd boy who helps her find herself. After an unprecedented dust storm, Ila's younger sister Riley gets severely sick and her life depends on Ila. Will Riley recover? It is all up to Ila.