In 1790, in the northern Massachusetts town of Amherst, twelve-year–old Josh Ford’s father is arrested for a murder he didn’t commit. Fearing that his father will not receive a fair trial, young Josh decides to walk to New York City, then the capitol of the newborn United States,  to get President George Washington to intervene.

Josh’s journey leads him through many perils and delays in a headlong race toward judgment and an unexpected ending.