Former library book in good condition: typical library stamps/stickers; writing on title verso page; some page corners have been bent; some staining but no other writing. Library of Congress No. 63-9334
A young orphan boy, whose name, age, and background are unknown in the beginning of the book, is struggling to make ends meet for himself. He bounces from migrant family to migrant family, surviving by picking crops, but he makes no profit due to his wages being taken by the families he stays with. Near the beginning of the book, he makes his first friend, a girl named Raidy. Raidy befriends him and says he should have a name. Before she can decide on one, their friendship is cut short when Raidy dies in a farming accident.
Exhausted, hungry, and distraught over his only friend's death, the boy takes off on his own and collapses onto the ground without knowing or caring where he is or if he will survive. He is in Montana, where he is found by a woman named "Boss" and her dog Jupiter. Boss is a modern-day shepherd, tending a flock of 900 sheep with the help of two dogs, and she brings the boy to her camp, caring for him until he recovers. Boss's camp tender, Tex explains to the boy how Boss's son, Ben, was killed by a bear and that Boss sometimes hunts the bear that killed her son.
