Dublin, 1984: Jim Finnegan is thirteen years old, the youngest in a family of five sisters. After a drunken yet delicate rendition of 'The Fields of Athenry' at a party, Jim captures both the attention of the beautiful Saidhbh Donohue and the unwanted desires of the devious Father O'Culigeen. Between his growing love for Saidhbh and the abuse O'Culigeen subjects him to, Jim's life starts to unravel.