This retro urban novel is a tale about a group of working class boys growing up in the Bronx during the late forties and early fifties. The story takes the young men from early adolescence to young manhood. It features in particular the lives of two of these boys who are close friends, Johnny and Tony. The novel centers on the street lives of the boys who for a period of time sink into fighting and violent gang activities. Eventually they survive these negative activities and grow into normal living patterns as they become young men.