Published after Wolfe's death, this novel follows George Webber, a young man from a small Southern town who moves to New York to become a writer. Its first part recalls his boyhood among his relatives, and the later sections follow his city life and a stormy love affair with an older, successful woman, Esther Jack. Wolfe presents the city as exciting and overwhelming, and the story balances comedy, ambition and emotional struggle. Drawing on his own years in New York, he gives a vivid account of an aspiring writer searching for love, success and a settled sense of self.