One day, when 10 year old Kioko tearfully watches as the warriors slaughter yet another of his favorite bulls, he resolves to travel to the Land of Cattle to get his own bull. Grandmother warns him that the Land of Cattle is very, very far. "You walk and walk and walk until the sun sets and your feet swell so much they become as fat as those of an elephant. Then you walk many, many more days in the wilderness, where you meet the legendary, one-legged giants and cheeky spirits of the plains. You fight all kinds of fearsome animals and if you are still alive, you reach the Land of Cattle where you find the fiercest people you have ever seen!" But when Kioko gets lost, in the bewildering plains after stealing away to follow the warriors to the Land of Cattle, he finds there is much more in the plains than Grandmother had ever told him.