New York pretentious Diana Sullivan is writing a series of articles on the theme of "family" for Cosmopolitan magazine. Primarily to keep an eye on her but also because of the personal connection, Diana invites her mid-teen daughter, Grace Sullivan, to accompany her on a trip to research the next in the series, dealing with their own family, most specifically a wing that lives deep in the backwaters of the Louisiana bayou, which has been largely overtaken by oil companies of late. They are most directly connected by brothers: Diana's grandfather Mike, and Joe, the patriarch of the Louisiana wing. Diana and Grace have never met their Louisiana relations, they in turn who do not even know that Diana and Grace exist. As difficult as it becomes, Diana and Grace are able to meet their Louisiana relations, led by Joe's widowed young wife, Ruth Sullivan, who acts as if Joe is still with them, who sees anything related to the city as suspect, and who rules her household with an iron fist to her own code. Her family consists of three grown sons - Mark, Tommy and mentally slow Pauly - and Mark's pregnant wife, Candy. What started out as a one afternoon interview ends up being a multi-day stop for Diana and Grace to stay with Ruth and her family in their backwater shack with no electricity. Diana eventually learns of another Sullivan son, Mike, who has broken away from Ruth's grip. Ultimately, the clash of cultures, fueled by Grace's boredom coupled with her cousins' curiosity, leads to tragedy on multiple levels, but not only with a better understanding of the other on both sides, but also an understanding of the family dysfunction that exists on both sides.