Lincoln Friday is born into nothing, an obscure, dirt farmer’s son, destined to live dominated by the jagged edges of two wars. His early years are an endless series of losses, yet he struggles back after each blow, and slowly, a strongbox of dreams emerges from the fog of his hopelessness.The harshest test of Lincoln’s life, though, comes when the effects of his exposure to Agent Orange devastate both his and his daughter’s lives. While the Fridays fight back passionately, the courts, Congress, and the VA turn their backs on them.In the end, his deeds were neither profound nor dazzling, but he left his mark on disparate people in disparate lands. The world he touched chafed less for his quiet dignity.