One evening in 1981, Agnes Bain, her mother, Lizzie, and friends play cards. Agnes lives in her parents’ cramped flat with her husband, Big Shug, and her three children, Catherine, Leek, and Shuggie. At age 39, Agnes still feels young and wishes she were spending the evening out on the town. To compensate, she drinks.

Catherine interrupts the women, complaining that Shuggie will not leave her alone. Shuggie clings to her like a much younger child, but it is “clear how he loved the bony comfort of her” (22). Lizzie boasts of Catherine’s new job, which she has taken up due to the family’s need for money. Agnes asks if Leek is home, and Catherine responds that she does not know. Leek has a talent for hiding. Catherine goes back to bed, and the women go back to their cards.

Lizzie and her husband, Wullie, claim to disapprove of drinking, but they drink in secret. When Lizzie goes to the restroom, Agnes finds some of her parents’ hidden alcohol and drinks it with the rest of her friends. Nan Flannigan brings out a catalog, and the women agonize over clothing they cannot afford until Shug enters the flat.