Copeland Parker lives with his family in the sawmill village, which lies along the Savannah River, just down the dirt road from Port Wentworth, just up the river from the city of Savannah, Georgia. His father is a doctor. His mother is a school teacher. His younger brother is named Charles. They live in one of the large two-story houses. It is 1960, and life is good in the sawmill village.
It is the beginning of a new decade. The aroma of change is in the air. There will be a new president, a new frontier, a new challenge. But a time of change can also be a time of upheaval. And a new family moves into the sawmill village.
The time will come when Copeland Parker will wish that family had never come to the village. The problem for Copeland is the teenage daughter in that family. His heart will be set on fire, but that is not the only thing that will burn in the village.