In the rough and ready environment of a northern mining town, Moishe, a young boy in love with horses and himself saddled with that strange, foreign sounding name, one that provokes mistreatment by bullies, navigates the increasingly painful steps of growing up. He struggles to make sense of his physical development, his precocious curiosity about girls and women and how to deal with a mother who though loving is difficult to live with. He finds comforting solace in the woods and lakes and a growing fascination with fishing and hunting. He deals with his attention deficit disorder in school by a force of will, becoming a committed reader and an athlete. His father contributes to his confusion by refusing to lay out ironclad rules, rather choosing to challenge Moishe's stereotypes about killing animals, his attitudes toward indigenous people, toward members of the gay community and his deepening interest in religion. In adolescence, his older sister and her husband become his salvation.
Life becomes a series of moral tests. His failure to help other outsiders troubles him and he vows to do better. He forms a close relationship with Jamey, a charismatic, strong and kind young man who grew up on an ‘Indian reservation’ and becomes a legendary bush pilot. Jamey himself faces a major moral decision in choosing between two women he loves, one from the reservation and another from the private school to which his family sends him in order to socialize him. Jamey’s aboriginal girlfriend eventually is drawn to an older possessive man. That leads to a violent outcome.