In the beginning . . . there was Ezekiel "Easy" Rawlins and Raymond "Mouse" Alexander - two young men setting out in life, hitting the road in a "borrowed" ''36 Ford headed for Pariah, Texas. The volatile Mouse wants to retrieve money from his stepfather so he can marry his EttaMae. But on their steamy bayou excursion, Mouse will choose murder as a way out, while Easy''s past liaison with EttaMae floats precariously in his memory. Easy and Mouse are coming of age - and everything they ever knew about friendship and about themselves is coming apart at the seams . . .