Brigadier General Frank D. Merrill leads the 3,000 American volunteers of his 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), aka "Merrill's Marauders", behind Japanese lines across Burma to Myitkyina, pushing beyond their limits and fighting pitched battles at every strong-point.
Rusty is a 12-year-old boy who lives in a remote Rocky Mountain mining town. With few friends his own age, he has developed a fantasy world which manifests itself in the abandoned mine shaft where he plays every day. It is here that the boy finds an injured falcon, whom he ultimately restores to health and grooms as a hunting bird.
