It is 1938, and little Josie Flynn is sitting at the top of the stairs outside her attic room in Liverpool. Despite the cold on the landing and the thinness of her nightie, she is completely happy. Her beautiful prostitute mother is nearby - and this for the present is all that matters. What Josie doesn't know is that her long and often lonely journey through life is just beginning. It is a journey that starts in heartbreak when she is sent to live with her miserable Aunt Ivy and over-friendly Uncle Vince; takes her to Barefoot House where she becomes the paid companion of the elderly, cantankerous woman who eventually becomes her friend; and seems to promise life-long happiness when she meets handsome, charismatic Jack Coltrane in New York. But life never turns out quite the way you want, and when tragedy strikes, Josie returns to Liverpool alone. As she renews old loves and former friendships, she embarks upon a career which is as unlikely as it is successful.