Coming of age as a free-born Black girl in Brooklyn after the Civil War, Libertie was all too aware that her purposeful mother, a practicing physician, had a vision for their future together: Libertie would go to medical school and practice alongside her. But Libertie, drawn more to music than science, feels stifled by her mother's choices and is hungry for something else - is there really only one way to have an autonomous life? A 'bildungsroman' for America in the 21st century.