The story is set in a small town of Georgia, a disparate bunch of people come together under court-ordered integration. What follows is unique blend of humour, power, irony, and love. Excerpt: "Death is always the same, but each man dies in his own way. For J.T. Malone it began in such a simple ordinary way that for a time he confused the end of life with the beginning of a new season. The winter of his fortieth year was an unusually cold one for the Southern town—with icy, pastel days and radiant nights. The spring came violently in middle March in that year of 1953, and Malone was lazy and peaked during those days of early blossoms and windy skies."