In the space of a few days, Carrie loses her marriage, her career, and her home—all while working in Lagos, Nigeria. She is blindsided by the losses and realizes the story she painstakingly knit together over the past two decades—the story explaining her life and who she is—has unraveled.

With no plan for the future and only her deaf cat, Lucy, for company, Carrie decides to remain in Africa until she figures out what has just happened.

What happens next is an awkward, amusing, and ultimately inspiring journey as Carrie slowly lets go of who she thought she was and starts from scratch at middle-age: making unlikely friends, acquiring dump trucks, tumbling into an improbable love affair, and eventually learning to listen to the elusive and sometimes annoying voice helping her discover who she is, find the neglected artist inside, and piece together her unexpected new life.