Morgan Roberts, a middle aged adult in crisis, reunites with his best friend when he returns to the summer camp of his youth. His troubles seem to magnify when he is joined by a rag-tag group of 10 year old campers. Through their struggles they collectively overcome their personal problems and exchange them for one of the best summers of their lives.
A withdrawn young man, Leland Fitzgerald is imprisoned for the murder of a mentally disabled boy, who also happened to be the brother of his girlfriend, Becky. As the community struggles to deal with the killing, Pearl Madison, a teacher at the prison, decides to write about Leland's case. Meanwhile, others affected by the murder, including Becky and her sister, Julie, must contend with their own problems.
When her rather explicit copy is rejected, magazine journalist Kate is asked by her editor to come up with an article on loving relationships instead, and to do so by the end of the day. This gets Kate thinking back over her own various experiences, and to wondering if she is in much of a position to write on the subject.