Personal and political freedom in 1930s Wales is the subject of this moving novel. The central character seeks to escape work as a miner during the Great Depression, and through his involvement in the Labour Movement, he finds himself in the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War. Through battle and subsequent imprisonment, he finds the maturity to eventually return to his poverty-stricken Welsh valley and contribute to its regeneration. This gripping and affecting narrative is persuasive and authentic in its portrayal of the Depression and full of remarkable scenes from the Spanish Civil War. It is a moving testament to those who suffered in Wales and Spain yet remained undefeated by the horrors of poverty and a brutal war.