Orphaned at an early age and forced to live with an aunt who has "drunk too deeply from the cup of bitterness" Zorrie cultivates an awareness of the natural world that anchors her grief-ridden life. At 21, orphaned and alone, Zorrie Underwood sets out penniless to make her way in the Midwest during the depths of the Great Depression. Sleeping in barns and haystacks, she does odd jobs for folks eking out a living in hard times. Ultimately, she hitchhikes to Illinois, where she finds employment at the Radium Dial Company.