When John Dyorich is offered a hospital administrator position in a large hospital in Salt Lake City, he uproots his family from Cambridge, Massachusettes for the cross-country move to Utah. John and his wife,Diane, both feel a little uneasy about moving where they know they can expect to be surrounded by a lot of Mormons, but they're well-prepared to refuse any and all expected attempts to be proselyted to their strange religion.
Adjustment to their new home is different for each member of the family. For older son, Joey, it's anything BUT a happy move. With no friends, no extended family, and being the "new kid," he is hard-pressed to feel like he fits in at his new high school.Coming from Cambridge, by Utah standards, he "talks funny." He moved from a private Catholic high school, though the family isn't actually Catholic. He's not used to the conservative culture among his peers. Or are they really his peers? He's not too sure of that. And it might just be easier to find acceptance among other kids who feel marginalized and at odds with the status quo in the neighborhood and Utah society.
It's often said that things have to get worse....hit rock bottom....before they get better. And for the Dyorich family the downward spiral seems endless and hopeless. If they had only stayed in Cambridge.... But, it's also more the rule than the exception that life is full of surprises. The Dyorich family has more than their share of those surprises in the ensuing years. And occasionally in our lives, we find that we are doing that which we were sure we were never to do. And liking it.