Cathi Morgan's life is a mess. Hiding from a secret guilt, she tries so hard to fit in with new friends. Instead she ends up in deep trouble with lots of community service hours and no real friends. While working her summer away as an assistant at Old Economy Village, a living history museum, she stumbles onto a surprising ability. She discovers she can shift back in time to 1830, a period when Old Economy was a thriving community. Here she meets Katrina, a girl her own age, who is experiencing her own troubles and hardships. As the bond between the two girls strengthens, Cathi realizes she must choose between staying in the past or finding the courage to return to her own time and face her problems.