In the mid-20th century, in New Orleans, we meet Josie who is excited to leave for college to reinvent her identity. Her mother is a sex worker, and everyone knows that about her. Josie is a name typically reserved for prostitutes in her culture. She works two part time jobs to earn her tuition and books, and when she buys books, she runs into her crush, Patrick, whose father has been like a father to Josie too.
Josie also works at a brothel as a janitor. She works for Madam Willie, where her mother still works as a prostitute. Willie and Josie are often cross with each other, mostly because Josie's mother is a petty criminal. When a rich person turns up robbed and murdered, Josie silently suspects her mother is responsible.
As Josie continues trying to escape the limitations of her life, her mother often holds her back, and ultimately, Josie ends up in a similar situation as her mother was originally in at the beginning of her career as a prostitute: She is in desperate need for money if she still wants to go to college, and suddenly she realizes that if she becomes a prostitute, she can afford to go to college. But, she feels that if she has sex for money, that she will be deeply ashamed of herself, as she is ashamed of her mother, and she decides she'd rather be poor than become a sex worker.
