Lizzie Devlin is orphaned and living in Liverpool with her Aunt Annie, Uncle Rupe and two cousins in Cranberry Court. Lizzie loves her aunt, but is hated by her uncle and escapes whenever she can to play by the canal. She becomes friends with Geoff Gardiner from the orphan asylum and with Clem Gilligan who works on a canal boat. Each of the three finds the others' life fascinating. Lizzie gets a job in the perfume factory and does her best to keep the peace at home, but things are deteriorating as Uncle Rupe grows more violent and eventually Lizzie is forced to flee.