It's the summer of 1942, America is at war, men line up by the thousands to join the army. On a tiny island off the coast of Maine, three fifteen-year-old boys begin a summer they will never forget. Hermie, Oscy and Benjie are accustomed to coming up and spending the summer together, but somehow this year seems different. Girls have replaced baseball and comic books, and a beautiful young war bride has won the heart of Hermit. Left alone by her husband as he goes off tofight in World War II, Dorothy is befriended by Hermie and they form a bond that differs greatly from the one he shares with his two buddies. After meeting three girls on the beach, Hermie and his friends experience adolescent misadventures including a date at the movies, a trip to the drugstore to buy condoms and a beach party that begins with a jitter-bug and ends with Hermie missing his date's lips and kissing her forehead.
It is with Dorothy that Hermie feels most comfortable, and after she invites him over for a friendly night out at her house, Hermie discovers a devastating telegram. In that one night Hermie learns an importatnt lesson about life, love and the scope of human compassion.