Abomination is Martha's sister Mary's child, and so named because of the shame he inflicted upon the family being born out of wedlock. This is what Martha and Mary's parents firmly believe, that the child is something to be ashamed and embarrassed of. Mary was exiled and now Abomination is a six year old boy who has been brought up in a cage in his grandparent's basement. Martha too is a prisoner trapped by her parent's religious fanaticism into caring for her sister's so-called "abomination". With the aid of Scott, the new kid at school and the only friend of Mary's, Mary searches for her sister, hoping to reunite Abomination with his mother and perhaps escape the confines of her own strict life.