Gary Ledbetter

John Cooper is in a retirement home. There are strict rules for the residents, but he refuses to fall into passivity. He flirts constantly with Nurse Wilson and spends time with his best buddy Michael Aylott, who's slowly drifting into senility.

Verlin is 9 years old and does not talk, nor does he even seem to hear. Henry, a child-like adult, befriends Verlin and pulls him from his shell. Verlin's mother mistrusts Henry, who she feels is dangerous.

Roo Marcus has just spent 8 years in a mental institution, and takes up bare-knuckle boxing and gets a job fighting in a gym run by Napoleon. Roo is often tormented by memories of shock treatment and inhumane conditions. His friends, Capser and Ratty help him along the way, until he gets brutally beaten up by one of Napoleon's fighters...