Set in upstate New York, the story of a kid who feels the weight of the world on his shoulders. Fourteen-year-old Joe Henry manages a fragile existence. He is a young boy coming of age in the 1970s amidst chaos: Joe's father is an abusive drunk, his mother is barely able to keep the pieces of her broken life together, and Joe is caught stealing and sentenced to juvenile prison for six months. Forced to spend time away from his family, Joe finally gets a chance to find himself and his family finally realizes how much the boy has sacrificed for their mistakes.