In 1933, nine-year-old Cassie Logan lives in rural Mississippi with her three brothers, Stacey (twelve years old), Christopher-John (seven years old), and Little Man (six years old). Unlike most black families during this time, the Logan family owns the land on which they reside. It originally belonged to a white plantation owner, Harlan Granger, who sold it to cover his taxes during Reconstruction.
Rather than a single, overarching storyline, the bulk of the novel consists of several intertwining plots, each involving one or more members of the Logan family and illustrating various aspects of black/white interactions during the nadir of American race relations. Several episodes feature black characters being humiliated by powerful white citizens and being forced to weigh the potential cost of standing up for themselves.
At school, Cassie and Little Man notice that the books they use were originally distributed to the white children and given to the black students once they wore out.
Cassie's father, David Logan, visits the family from his job on the railroad during the holidays.
After Cassie is humiliated by Lillian Jean Simms, a white girl, she pretends to forgive Lillian Jean and becomes friends with her long enough to learn sensitive information about the Simms family. Cassie assaults Lillian Jean and forces her to apologize for all the humiliation she inflicted on her, then threatens to reveal all of Lillian Jean's secrets if she tells anyone what happened.
When Cassie's mother, a school teacher, catches Stacy's friend T.J. cheating in class, T.J. gets her fired from her job, with the help of the Wallace family.
Cassie's mother, in turn, organizes a boycott of the Wallaces' store because they are the cause of most of the trouble between the blacks and the whites, as well as possibly being members of the Ku Klux Klan. Later, David and his hired hand Mr. Morrison are attacked on the road, with the former ending shot, albeit surviving. Mr. Morrison brutally trashes the attackers, who turn out to be the Wallaces. As a result, the white community forces the bank to call the Logans' mortgage. David’s brother Hammer sells his car to pay it off and avoid losing the family land.
T.J. ends his friendship with Stacey and befriends Lillian Jean’s two older brothers, R.W. and Melvin Simms. The Simms boys convince T.J. to help them burgle a store, though in the process, Jim Lee Barnett, the store owner, is killed by the Simms boys, who set T.J. up to take the blame.
The book ends with T.J. about to be lynched for the death of Barnett when the cotton fields catch fire and the community bands together to stop the fire from spreading. Cassie realizes that her father set the fire to save T.J. Stacey asks what T.J.'s fate will be. David tells the children T.J. will likely be convicted of Barnett's murder and may be executed. Cassie, overwhelmed by the news, silently goes to bed. Although Cassie never liked T.J., she cries for him and the land.
