Like two of her older sisters before her, Thérèse Martin is determined to become a Discalced Carmelite nun, even though she is officially too young to enter the order. Thérèse's stubborn piety wins through, and her love affair with Jesus transfigures her short life. Alain Cavalier's account of Thérèse's joy in her vocation is based on her spiritual autobiography, ''The Story of a Soul''.