This novel documents the idealistic passage of a young couple from WWII-era Brooklyn into a bleak terrain in upstate New York, where they establish a family farm. Within a span of twenty years, they raise five boys and watch them leave their dreams behind, one by one. As alcohol and disillusionment begin to cast their long shadows over the succeeding generation, each of the family's sons develops a suite of defensive behaviors; until, at last, the youngest son, Zeekie, finds redemption in becoming the family's storyteller.