Johnnie Alone — Elizabeth Webster

Johnnie Cass comes from a broken home. His mother is well-meaning but is absolutely terrified of Big Joe, Johnnie's stepfather, who is a violent drunkard. Johnnie, who has been made partially deaf by his stepfather's continual battering, lives in a world of his own. When Big Joe falls down the stairs one night, Johnnie mistakenly believes he has killed him. In fear and terror, he runs away to try and find his real father.