A young pampered, American student takes a scholarship in the South of France and meets Wally, an Algerian who has fled from the civil war. Thrust into life in the raw, she learns of conflict and poverty when she and Wally embark on an affair. He has a wife and family back in Algeria and they separate and Louise goes back to America. 40 years later she sets out to find out what happened to Wally. Magical stuff!