A young girl is torn from her home in post-war Europe by her mother in search of a better life.Â
Will Ellie ever find her own identity in this new country, New Zealand ?
In 1951 six-years-old Ellie is torn from her home in Holland by her mother Rita to start a new life in New Zealand. Or are her mother’s reasons for emigrating a lot darker than meets the eye? Rita’s reluctance to inform Ellie about her past only adds to Ellie’s desire to know more about her roots and about her father. The relationship between her mother and her uncle Pieter is not what it seems either, and for Ellie the truth is elusive. Pieter was never the favourite son of his father, who still bears a heavy grudge against Germans. Pieter’s marriage to the German immigrant Birgit therefore, irrevocably causes the rift to become even larger.
Ellie is determined to discover more about her Dutch roots, much to her mother Rita’s frustration. Ellie is 22 when she makes the journey back to Holland but the visit to her home country only disrupts her feelings of belonging even further when she uncovers additional facts about her past. Facts that Ellie could never have imagined.