After his dog is accused of biting a child, the boy and the animal leave Florida for California. Along the way they encounter a New Orleans shoeshine man, another boy (who is a victim of abuse) and an insightful hobo.

After a dog, Crash, is accused of biting a child, the canine's owner, Todd, flees a Florida "redneck" sheriff to save his companion and hitchhikes west. In New Orleans, Louisiana, Todd meets Kevin, an African American shoeshine boy, along with riverboat deckhand Bernard, a kindly old black man named Mr. Ruffin, and a simple fellow named Dusty. Todd and Bernard join forces and, with Crash tagging along, leave the South, pursued by the villainous Evil, who nearly kills them when he burns down a barn. Todd, Bernard, and Crash travel to Big Sur, California, in search of a spiritual resting place they call "Home."