A young man searches for patriotism in America at peace. Matt Wynand is a wayward soul. Modern society seems hollow beneath the glamorous pale of previous generations that rose when their country called.
Matt listens for that patriotic call in the present yet hears nothing.
And when America finally summons Matt's convictions in a less grandiose, less fantastical fashion than Matt envisioned, the ensuing course of events takes a very different shape from anything he could have guessed. Matt's world is small. He has recently left a menial data-entry position frustrated with its dullness. His friend and mentor, a convenience store clerk and World War II Marine veteran, often reflects on the cost of U.S. freedom and how younger generations sometimes lose sight of opportunities they've been handed. Matt struggles to balance this idealism with the realities he sees around him.