Lummy Tullos, an unpretentious farmer, is forced to leave his home in Choctaw, Mississippi, in search of his lifelong love, a young slave named Susannah. Reaching the small town of Winnfield, Lummy reunites with his long-lost brother, Ben, who works as foreman on the farm of the very man who took Susannah. With the Civil War now in full swing and the Confederate Conscription Act looming heavy over everyone, Lummy decides to enlist before being drafted. Desperately wanting to be back with Susannah, his only goal is to go to war, survive, and find his way back home to the only life and love that will make him whole.