11 year old Grace Gillian overhears the landlord evicting her mother from their mobile home in Little Rock, Arkansas. She fears her mother will relapse into alcohol abuse and she will again have to care for herself and her 5 year old brother Henry James. Grace develops a plan to keep herself and her brother safe but it depends upon her brother's cooperation. In the past, James has appeared highly anxious and clingy and Grace fears he will undermine her plan. When the children are discovered living in the local library, they instantly realize that their lives are about to change forever. It is Christmas and the children are seemingly at the mercy of the Little Rock social servces system. They long for a Christmas miracle.