The true story of a nine-year old boy's experience of the war in Germany. When the blanket bombing begins, Stefan is exposed to the grim realities of war. He is evacuated away from the city and finds himself living on afarm close to the border with France. Here he learns farming and tool-making skills that serve him well for the rest of his life. He also meets and makes friends with prisoners of war from France and Russia. While his contemporaries find themselves sent to the battle front towards the end of the war, Stefan and his family escape from the advancing US army and he finds himself once again working on a farm this time making friends with Jan from Poland.