Danny Blackgoat is a teenager in Navajo country when soldiers burn down his home, kill his sheep, and capture his family. During the Long Walk of 1864, Danny soon becomes a troublemaker, refusing to accept captivity. He is sent to Fort Davis, Texas, a Civil War prisoner outpost. There he battles bullies, rattlesnakes, and soldiers, until he meets Jim Davis. Davis teaches Danny how to hold his anger and how to read and speak in English. For Christmas, Davis aids Danny in a daring and dangerous escape. Set in troubled times for the Navajo, Danny Blackgoat is the story of one boy's hunger to be free.