His mother dies when he is born, and Henry Edwards suffers through a troubled childhood as the adopted son of a Jewish junkyard owner. Abe and Ruth Loeb who adopted Henry are murdered, and he is left alone in the world at the age of nineteen. His friend Andrew Stoddard, the lawyer who participated in Henry's adoption, encourages Henry to attend law school. Henry takes Andrew's advice and works his way through college and law school by becoming a cook at Mrs. Graves' restaurant. Mrs. Graves becomes Henry's good friend. Henry becomes a Lawyer after some hard times in law school, and then opens his office with the help of Maria Gomez, his friend who later becomes his wife. His first client is Ella Mae Thompson, a little elderly widow, who lives near Henry's office. Ella Mae is a devout Christian and she gives Henry some much needed advice that later is of great help to Henry. Henry's first major case is a murder case which he appears to have lost when he thinks of the advice Ella Mae had given him to use when all appears hopeless. He uses her advice to achieve a stunning victory in the murder trial.