Six-year-old Anna refuses to speak. Her mother, Clara, never wanted to read or write. Lonely and isolated from the rest of the world, Anna looks on as her mother stuffs something into her pockets or sews things into the seam of her sleeve – little notes on which Clara has had their address written down, or the titles of books her little daughter likes to read, or recipes for her favourite cake, or verses from lullabies. Armed with only these notes as provision, Anna sets off for a school for deaf-mute children. Here, she meets a teacher named Vincent who takes it upon himself to try and banish the family curse for good.