It is set in 1870 and tells the story of a boy forced to leave his home in Prussian Poland for a new life in America.

Hinton visited Poland in 2005 shortly after the death of Pope John Paul II in which he found his ancestral home in Polichno then followed the river Vistula to the sea from Bydgoszcz and Toruń collecting inspirations along the way.

[2] Kirkus Reviews wrote, "The two main characters are reasonably well-developed, and the obstacles they face are never minimized in this coming-of-age tale.

But sentence structure rarely varies, colorful imagery [...] is lacking, and the plot-driven narrative moves forward at a measured, too-predictable pace.

"[3] Historical Novel Society called the novel "a classic hero’s tale—a linear, solid, and yet compelling story told completely from [the main protagonist's], Leo's, point of view.