Taken from his unwed mother immediately after his birth and sent to a New York Children's Asylum, Franky never questioned his life of sterile walls, strict discipline, and emotionally distant caregivers. That is, until being selected to ride the orphan trains, where he quickly discovers there is more to life than living in an institution.

Taken in by a well-educated judge who is looking to save a wayward boy, the man soon turns Franky into a voracious reader who wishes nothing more than to join the Army he spends so much time reading about. The judge succeeds in teaching Franky there is more to life than violence. That is, until the judge's past threatens Franky's very survival.

Having vowed never to return to the asylum, Franky decides to take his chances on the streets of Detroit. Working under the protection of his uncle Tobias, street name Mouse, a trusted member of the infamous Purple Gang, he gets a new kind of education, one that isn't taught in books.

Will Franky be able to handle the war raging around him, or will the ugliness of life claim another innocent soul?