It is set in the 1970s. The film focuses on Vada Sultenfuss, an eleven year old headstrong girl. She grows up in a funeral home run by her emotionally distant father. She is obsessed with death and struggles with the loss of her mother who died during childbirth. Her best friend Thomas J Sennet is a sweet shy boy who is allergic to bees.
Her summer is about to change in a different way that she did not plan for. Her father, Harry begins dating Shelly, a compassionate makeup artist. Jealous and thinking that her dad will be stolen away, she tries to sabotage their relationship. She develops a crush on her English teacher and sign up for his Poetry class. She also gets her first period.
Tragedy strikes when Thomas dies after going to find Vada’s lost mood ring in the woods. She is stung by bees and suffers from an allergic reaction. She retreats into grief and heartbreak. With the support of her father, Shelly and the community, she heals. Vada matures emotionally and physically and learns to accept change and loss.
