A young boy named Bobby lives with his Uncle David, Aunt Sarah, and younger cousin in New York City. His aunt and uncle emigrated from Russia and are still keeping up with Russian politics. However, Uncle David is disappointed by the state of the failed revolution. In his youth, he had been a socialist activist but was forced to flee by the authorities. In America, he gets a job at a manufacturing firm. When he isn't working, he likes to read, though Aunt Sarah thinks he is wasting his time.

Then, the Great Depression hits. At first, Bobby's aunt and uncle weathered the depression fine, but their neighbors and friends lost jobs.

One day, Bobby and his uncle are walking in the city when Bobby sees a family getting evicted for the first time and is horrified. Shortly after that, Uncle David loses his job at the manufacturing plant. He goes unemployed for several months despite searching for a job every day.

In the evenings, he came home and buried himself in his books. During this time, Bobby hardly notices the effects of poverty, thanks to his aunt's economizing. Uncle David eventually finds work on a construction project lasting seven months. When Uncle David is out of work again, they make sacrifices. Bobby and his cousin are moved into the same room so that extra furniture can be sold. Aunt Sarah gets a job mending clothes. Eventually, Uncle David has to sell his books. Then, one day, he came home, quite optimistic. He says he just got a new job as a manager.

The next day, a snowy one, he walks with Bobby to school and then turns off to work. When Bobby gets out of school, he walks home. Near his house, he sees a group of people building a fort in the snow. Shocked, he runs to get Aunt Sarah, who drags Uncle David upstairs into their house. Uncle David explains that he had been hired because they needed him to end a strike, but he wasn't willing to fire all those people who were just like him, so he quit. On his way home, dreading having to share the bad news, he sees some children playing in the snow and is reminded of his youth in Russia, so he joins them. Aunt Sarah is angry at him, not for the job, but for playing in the street, for she can not understand why he wants to act like a child.