In this memoir, Jim French describes his life up to and including the age of 18. Written from memory, his narrative is his account of the classic hero's journey. Jim dwells in his garden of Eden and is expelled into the wilderness. He enjoys highs and endures lows as he tries to reshape this wilderness into a broad, sunlit upland. He meets violence and death, and beauty. He is rescued by giants, men and women who protect him while teaching him new tactics in the battle of life. In a series of small, connected stories, Jim draws an interesting and varied map of his coming of age.