Growing up in the years following World War II, Joel Bloom always played war or baseball with his friends. They dreamed of fighting in the military or leading the Dodgers to the World Series. But by the time he's eighteen, the Vietnam War is in full swing, and it's not as simple as the war he learned about when he was a kid. Old enough to be drafted, Joel loves his country, but he knows that fighting in an unjust war isn't something he can do. After trying and failing to be a Conscientious Objector he leaves for Canada-a decision that will help him avoid the conflict of war, but will create one inside of him that will take much longer to resolve. In an insightful and compelling novel from bestselling nonfiction writer Mark Kurlansky comes an exploration of one boy's struggle to understand himself amidst the harsh realities of life during wartime.