Serena, a 12-year old from Los Angeles, is dumped by her movie-star mother at a strict Swiss boarding school in 1962. 6,000 miles from home. Alternately gung-ho and self-doubting, Serena competes against another American, Nick, 13, the top-dog at school. He seesaws between liking Serena and rejecting her for a Spanish coquette, Olivia. Nick bets that he can climb to Olivia's room at night and get a kiss. When he is almost caught, Serena takes the fall for him and is punished. She runs away,

but is brought back to school, caned and shamed.

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The parallel story of MIRABEL, stemming from Serena’s effect on the teachers, concerns the elegant headmistress Metz’s increasingly desperate need for control and the escapist teacher Bovay getting past a crushing broken engagement to step up

and change the culture of the school.

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In the spring, when Olivia gets the lead role in the year-end play despite Serena's superior talent, Serena gets Olivia kicked out of school. Torn by guilt, Serena leads Nick and the other kids in a wild scheme to get Olivia back. Nick and Serena are caught and the scheme seems to fail, but the adult fall-out from their rebellion is such that the nature of the school is transformed. Metz loses her storied self-control, Bovay replaces Metz as headmistress, Olivia returns to school, and Nick and Serena,

once rivals, are now more than friends.