Blind and fatherless since the age of two, ten-year-old Jon struggles to fit in at his new public school and hide his growing interest in wood carving from his mom who still mourns the death of Jon's father who hoped to become a professional wood carver.
Eleven-year-old Joseph deeply wishes that his mother could learn how to read, since her inability to read directions or street signs has complicated their life considerably.
A family carrying ice skates passes villages, farms, and forests on the way to a frozen lake high in the hills. Fifteen paintings accompany brief descriptive text.
