This fascinating historical drama, set in 1862 during the Civil War, chronicles the coming of age of a young Kentucky farm boy. The story begins in Meshack Creek, KY, a tense town where loyalties were sharply divided. Sarah Anders and her son were living there on an isolated farm while her husband was off fighting with the Confederates. They are one day jeopardized by the sudden arrival of Union-Army captain John Hull Abston and his ragged regiment. While they stay, Sarah and the captain begin a begrudging friendship based on mutual respect. Both of them have lost loved ones in the conflict, and the two are emotionally vulnerable. When one of the soldiers is seriously wounded during an accident, the regiment is forced to remain longer on the little farm. Conflict ensues between the captain and his men, when they keep stealing livestock from impoverished enemy farmers. Meanwhile the narrator, then a boy, is forced to use his gun against another human.