Chased by the muddy waters of the 1927 flood, Will Campbell and his family flee to the hills with four other families. There, he learns brutality exists among kin folks and murder among neighbors. He also learns fear which, in later times, revisits him. The flood's devastation increases Will's dislike of farming. That and his natural bent toward mischief, leads to alienation from his loved ones. When faced with death in the tumult of war, his view of his parent's beliefs changes.