Summary
1964
With the help of Nurse Caroline Gill, Dr. David Henry delivers his babies in a winter storm. Paul is born first and completely healthy. Phoebe is a surprise second baby and has Down’s syndrome. Believing that he is saving his family from grief, David orders Caroline to take Phoebe to a mental institution and tells his wife that Phoebe died. Caroline takes Phoebe to the mental institution but does not leave her there upon seeing its horrendous conditions. She leaves everything behind to raise Phoebe as her own.
1965
David and Norah feel the distance growing between them. During their anniversary, Norah begins drinking to fill the void. She gives David a camera called The Memory Keeper. Feeling the guilt of his lie, David convinces himself more that he did the right thing as he recalls his sister’s early death.
Caroline and Phoebe now live in Pittsburg with Doro and Leo March. Caroline works as Leo’s caretaker. Phoebe is slowly progressing. Al Simpson, a truck driver who helped Caroline before she left, found her after searching for almost an entire year.
1970
Now that Paul is six and going to school, Norah gets a job to gain her own independence. Taking pictures has become a serious hobby for David. The dark room is his safe haven and hiding place as it is where he can often be found and it houses the secret pictures and letters of Phoebe’s progress. Caroline fights with the Board of Education to allow kids with Down’s syndrome to be entered into public schools. After being asked so many times, she finally agrees to marry Al.
1977
David is receiving attention for his pictures. Norah owns the travel business that she began to work at five years earlier. Paul has a passion for music, but his dad pushes him towards basketball. While on a family vacation, Norah begins to have affairs with other men which both David and Paul know about.
When Doro leaves the house to Caroline and Al, Caroline is forced to think about the future and what it means for Phoebe. She also has to decide upon whether or not she will allow David to see the girl he sent away.
1982
Because David’s photography has him traveling for showcases, Caroline meets with him when he is close by. Caroline leaves him with two pictures and time to think of his decision and his past. David visits his abandoned childhood home and finds it is being occupied by a pregnant runaway, Rosemary. He reveals his secret to her and takes her home with him.
1988
David and Norah are divorced, and David shares a duplex with Rosemary. Rosemary encourages David to tell Norah and Paul, but he is hesitant. When he decides to reveal the truth, he dies of a heart attack before he can tell them.
Paul has pursued his dream of being a musician and now travels to play music. Phoebe works at a photocopy shop and wants to live independently.
1989
Caroline travels back to where it all started and reveals the truth to Norah: Phoebe is alive and well. Norah tells Paul the news. Norah and Paul meet Phoebe who does not fully understand what they are in relation to her. In a way, this revelation allows them to begin their lives again. Norah gets married. Paul decides to settle in Pittsburg. Phoebe is ready to move into a group home. Even though they live separate lives, Norah and Paul can begin to build a good relationship with Phoebe.