Two families with close ties are instantly plunged into almost untouchable grief and despair when one family’s father accidentally causes the shooting death of the other family’s five-year-old boy, Dusty. This tragedy takes place in contemporary times on an Ojibwe reservation in North Dakota.
LaRose is a family name passed from one generation to the next, starting with the original LaRose family of healers in 1839. At 8 years old, a young girl is sold by her mother to the owner of the trading post, in exchange for rum. Her story is told parallel to that of the LaRose of today, who is “given” to the family who lost their son. This reparation is old-time justice designed to help heal all those affected by Dusty’s death.
Their road back to becoming whole again is full of heart-lifting moments and despairing black holes. The boy LaRose uses his visionary connection to “the old ones” in order to bring everyone through to the other side, living life again.