Nancy and Louise, two working-class women from eastern Tennessee, are good friends--after Nancy's marriage to Ralph failed, she married Louise's brother Fred and Louise married Ralph. The story opens shortly after Ralph, a charming lout, has died somewhat unexpectedly, leaving the women with four kids between them and no money. The women bury Ralph in the backyard so they can continue collecting his disability checks. They start working on a story to sell to True Confessions magazine. If they get enough money, they'll dig him up and give him a proper buryin'.