Elisabeth and Massimo have been separated for two years and decide to affirm their independence with a divorce. The person who suffers the most from the situation is their son Marco, who normally lives with his father in a beautiful, but lonely country house. Marco's only satisfaction comes from riding his horse Socrates around the countryside, but Massimo sends the horse to his father-in-law in Sicily when, tired of solitude, he decides to sell everything and move into town. At this point, Marco, who has by chance witnessed the kidnapping and release of Gilberto, decides to flee and pretend he has been kidnapped to gain his parents' attention. His journey to Sicily, where his maternal grandfather lives near Ragusa, is crammed full of adventures, but the child makes it in the end, thanks to Rocco, a Neapolitan street urchin, who befriends him. Rocco ends up under a car, and this accident along with the vicissitudes of Marco's flight, bring the horrified parents together: they rush to the house of the wise grandfather, who meanwhile has manged to convince his grandson that life is beautiful after all, in spite of all the difficulties it involves.