Lewis, 42, is known only by his surname. A high school teacher and part-time jazz saxophonist, he lives a comfortable, well-ordered traditional life on Telegraph Hill, San Francisco in the heady days of the 1970s. With his liberated wife 32-years old Helen, feature writer on a local newspaper, their comfortable existence in the professions, vacations and outings to restaurants and clubs could not be more idyllic: Until they meet a sixteen year-old musically and intellectually-gifted prodigy, a student of Lewis with a background different to most. Raised in ghettos, Gary Bridger did not study in the conservatory, but on the street with violent, drug-dealing and murderous criminals. The resulting explosive make-up of his personality as he tells his story, a blend of musical genius, awe-inspiring wisdom and sidewalk savvy cannot fail to impact on Lewis, his wife and their entourage. Within a few short months of happiness, heartbreak and ultimately tragedy we learn often in disturbing, searing, lyrical and musically-driven prose why the couple re-examine all the values that previously governed them, and must change their lives forever.