Covina began as a coffee plantation carved out of Rancho La Puente, which John Rowland had purchased from California's Mexican government. Rowland later shared the land with his friend and partner William Workman, and after Rowland's death, his widow, Charlotte, sold 5,500 acres to Julian and Antonio Badillo, on which they attempted unsuccessfully to grow coffee. Joseph Swift Phillips purchased 2,000 acres of the Badillo land, subdivided the tract, and laid out Covina's town site. Covina came to grow, process, and ship eight percent of California's citrus, transforming into a farming community that was neither rural nor urban. Residents established cultural, social, and civic organizations, founded a scientific study group and a literary society, and even built an opera house.

In this classic western novel, established cattle barons defend their holdings against an newcomer, who threatens their status quo.

Every year, in the county of Medland, school football teams compete for the most prestigious trophy in the area - the County Cup. Round-robin tournaments determine the winners of the four Quarter Shields - in the North, the East, the South and the West and the winners then clash in the semi-finals and then the Finals. The first four books in this series detail the teams in each quarter, battling it out to win a place in the semi-finals. The winning teams - and characters - can then be followed through the series in subsequent titles.