Johnny "Preacher" Wilcox can't get a break. When his father abruptly leaves the family, Preacher is left with unanswered questions, wheat land to plow, and a broken tractor. The tractor mechanic is meaner than a bobcat, the creek is drying up, and Preacher's best friend, Earl Floyd, betrays him (or, so he thinks.) He has more going wrong than any twelve-year-old boy wants to think about. Why did Dad have to leave? How will he get everything done? Will Preacher and Earl Floyd ever be friends again?