Hamish is sensible, conscientious, and respectable, friends with the good boys, stays away from the bad ones. When his father is murdered in an act of random violence, Hamish's world turns upside down. Angry and alienated, Hamish begins to lose his tolerant beliefs and is drawn towards racist reactions. A move to France promises a much needed new beginning, but only builds Hamish's new attitudes as he becomes embroiled in the narrow-minded views of the locals.