Paddy entered the world on June 5, 1909, as the seventh son of Irish immigrant parents with fiery red hair...

While Paddy blends with his family, fitting into a society in which redheads are thought to be ill-tempered and feisty proves to be a huge challenge for the cunning youth.

Paddy's fierce determination to fit in with others puts him at odds with his father, who is barely able to put food on the family's table.

Paddy's mother, working to keep the peace between father and son, tells him he can have the things he desires if he has the patience to wait. Little does he know how well this lesson will serve him during his life.

After a final confrontation with his father, Paddy finds himself living on the streets of New York City, until he follows his friend Slim into a Children's Asylum to help keep tabs on Mileta, a little girl who has captured Paddy's heart.

Unfortunately for Paddy, his nemesis, Tobias - street name Mouse - already has his sights on the girl.

Fate steps in when Paddy, along with others from the asylum, get chosen to travel west on the Orphan Trains to find new homes.

Though the odds of being chosen for a new home are against him because of the color of his hair, Paddy finds himself with new parents and an opportunity to have the life he has always dreamed of, if only he can implement the tools his mother taught him and find the patience needed to bide his time.