- All fourteen-year-old Robbie Hendrick ever wanted was a family. Yet as another Mississippi summer begins, his wayward mother has run off again fearing a breakdown and he's left to burn the days caring for his half brother, Fess. As the deep days and nights pass without her return and with older brother Lucas dangerously in their lives again, Robbie must face the fact that his dream of a family may only be a dream and he might just lose the only family he's ever had: Fess.—Anonymous
- Fourteen year old Robbie Hendrick acts largely as the caregiver to his aged Grandma Gimmel and his younger half-brother Fess Hendrick. He has taken on this role as his deadbeat mother has abandoned them again, although he still hears from her on occasion. He believes that she will return soon, although that belief is more a delusion. He never knew his father, who was out of the picture before Robbie can even remember. The authorities do not know Robbie and Fess' mother has left them, Robbie telling any authority figure that she is still around so that the three of them can stay together as the only family he knows. Robbie has taken on a loner tough guy image to deal with the troubles in his life, which means that he has no real friends besides Fess. He commits petty crimes to pay for the few luxuries in his life. Because of his marginal grades, he may not pass the school year. His school principal, Mr. Curtis, has, however, made a deal with him that he can pass and move on to high school if he submits a well written essay on the topic of his choice by the end of the summer. Robbie writing about the goings-on in his life coincides with the return of his older brother Lucas Hendrick, who was away at college. Irresponsible Lucas, who was at college solely on his football prowess, ruined what was his only chance in life by flunking out of college, hence ruining any future he may have had as a football player. Lucas' return adds one more problem in Robbie's already problematic summer.—Huggo
- A Mississippi teenager struggles to care for his younger half-brother after their mother abandons them following a mental breakdown, and realizes that their older brother isn't the hero that their small, backwoods community has made him out to be. Robbie Hendrick is a typical 14 year old boy. He lives with his mother and his younger half-brother Fess. When their mother leaves Robbie and Fess to fend for themselves, the older sibling does his best to provide while never losing hope that their mother will someday return. By day Robbie and Fess swim in a local granite quarry and play soldiers and by night they comfort each other while pondering an uncertain future. Later, when Robbie's older brother Lucas returns home and postcards begin arriving from their mother, it begins to look as if the family will be reunited. Meanwhile, the dynamics between the brothers begins to shift, and Lucas convinced Robbie to get a job at the local gas station. But the more time they spend together, the more apparent it becomes that Lucas is just a cynical freeloader seducing desperate women while coasting on his reputation as a hot shot high school athlete. Later, when social services comes knocking, Robbie prepares to wage the biggest fight of his life.
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