This book introduces a young man who, as an indentured servant on a Carolina plantation, made money for his master as a superb cross-country runner. The Cherokee have named him "Crazy Runner" because he shows no fear when he runs and is faster than any Cherokee brave. In 1750 he runs away from the plantation and learns to live off the land. He is befriended by the Cherokee who eventually accept him as a warrior. He leaves the Cherokee to explore "Kaintuck." During this exploration, he has encounters with the Creek and Shawnee Indians, leads some white settlers to a valley in Kaintuck where they can settle, stops an Indian massacre, and rescues some whites captured by the Creek.