In November 1961, thirty-year-old Elizabeth Zott rises before dawn certain her life is over. Despite this, she goes to the lab to pack her daughter’s lunch, slipping in notes that mix encouragement with realism: fuel for learning, do not let boys automatically win, and a blunt reminder that most people are awful.

Madeline Zott, age five, is an unusually advanced reader who secretly collects these notes in a shoebox. Aware that early readers are not celebrated, Madeline pretends to be illiterate at school to fit in, reasoning that her mother never fit in and suffered for it.

While neighbor Harriet watches her in the mornings, Madeline maintains the appearance of an ordinary child. She safeguards her mother’s advice privately, balancing her curiosity and intellect with a calculated effort to avoid standing out.

In their Southern California town of Commons, the morning ritual culminates with Elizabeth kissing Madeline’s forehead, tucking her in, and urging her to "Seize the day." Elizabeth then drives off to the television studio. The chapter reveals the contrast at the heart of their lives: the outward success of Elizabeth as the star of Supper at Six and her inner sense that her life is over.