Fourteen-year-old Grace MacLean and her friend Judith go horseback riding in upstate New York on a winter morning, but their horses lose their footing on ice and slide onto a road, where Judith and her horse are killed by a jackknifing truck. Grace has her right leg amputated, and the frightening incident leaves a lasting trauma not only on Grace but also on her horse, Pilgrim. Grace's mother, seeking Grace's recovery, feels there's a link between her crippled, embittered daughter and Pilgrim's behavior. Learning about a horse trainer with a special gift, she takes Grace and Pilgrim to Montana where horse whisperer Tom Booker lives on a ranch with his family.