Lucky, a precocious young girl of uncertain age, but somewhere between ten and twelve, tells the story. She is a foundling, left in the Dukes' wagon as an infant. The old man who discovered her named her Lucky, because it was his lucky day when she entered his life. Lucky is wise beyond her years as she works at her jobs of entertainer (she plays a harmonica), ticket seller, and timekeeper for the boxing matches.

Saving enough money to buy some land, a place of their own, so the three Dukes can stop living on the road, is her dream.

Nose, the over-seventy-year-old man who found Lucky in the back of the wagon, has been a fight promoter for many years. He drinks whiskey when the money supply allows and tries to raise Lucky as a lady. He is honest, and his homespun philosophy...