As Elsie Dinsmore grows up, her family undergoes major changes. Her father, Horace Dinsmore, falls in love and marries sweet Rose Allison, whom Elsie has loved since childhood. Soon two new members, Horace Jr. and Rosebud, join the happy family.

Elsie has grown into a graceful, accomplished, and beautiful young woman of fifteen who faces the difficulties of peer pressure, the allurements of the world outside her family, and the delights and confusion of friendships both false and true. She confronts the greatest crisis of her life while visiting her maiden aunt Wealthy, when she experiences first the joy of first love and then the deep pain of betrayal.

In an attempt to cure her broken heart, Elsie's family takes her on a tour of Europe. Upon her return, when she least expects it, Elsie discovers the wonder of true love.