Relates the stories of Marilyn who, at age seventeen, fell in love with James, left her stage-mother, and set out on her own and Angie, her now seventeen-year-old daughter, who returns to Hollywood seeking her father.

When Marilyn was seventeen she fell in love with James, who was African-American. Their daughter, Angie, has never met James, and Marilyn has always told her he died before she was born. When Angie discovers evidence of an uncle she's never met she starts to wonder if her dad is still alive. Angie sets off, hitching a ride to LA from her home in New Mexico with her ex-boyfriend, Sam. Along the way, she uncovers some hard truths about herself, her mother, and what truly happened to her father.