Mitzi Bearclaw, of First Nations heritage, has just turned twenty-five, she having grand plans for this milestone year in her current home of Toronto, wanting to design hats that will change the world, and spending time with her boyfriend, Ringo Leaves-No-Shadow, a student and budding photographer. Instead, she reluctantly heads home to her reserve on remote Owl Island on the request of her father, William Bearclaw, to help him look after her mother, Annabelle Bearclaw, who Mitzi assumes is on her deathbed. While Mitzi has always gotten along with her father, the same cannot be said about her mother, an angry, bitter woman. The one person who has always been able to have a calming affect on Annabelle is Mitzi's cousin, Charlie Bearclaw - everyone calling him Charlie B.