In rural south Alabama in 1948, whites pick on one side of the cotton field and blacks on the other. Where the fields come together, twelve-year-old Ted Dillon meets Poudlum, a black boy his own age, who teaches him how to endure the hard work while they bond and go on to integrate the field. Through Poudlum and Jake, an escaped black convict, Ted learns of evil forces gathering to deprive Poudlum’s family of their property and livelihood. The white and black boy encounter danger and suspense while executing a plan to save Poudlum’s family, set Jake onto a river of freedom, and discover a great, yet simple, secret of enlightenment. With beguiling prose and an ear for the way people spoke in that time and place, author Ted M. Dunagan brings to life a story so engaging and heartfelt that it will resonate with young and old.