In a series of journal entries and letters to a pen pal, Katie relates her feelings about her father's death in World War II, her mother's remarriage, and the family's move from New York City to Texas.
Harry sits on the porch with Mr. George Baker, an African American who is one hundred years old but can still dance and play the drums, waiting for the school bus that will take them both to the class where they are learning to read.
A thirteen-year-old Jewish orphan reluctantly leaves her grandmother and immigrates to New York City, where she works for three years sewing lace and earning money to bring Grandmother to the United States, too.
Henry shows in new puppy Charley around the house, and even though Henry's parents say that the pet will sleep in the kitchen, the rules might change when Charley begins to cry.
Gabby has knitted mittens to give her grandfather for his birthday, and on their way to meet him, Gabby gets a new haircut and her mother gets a surprise.
Katie, a Jewish girl living in New York City during World War II, sees many dynamic changes in her world as she ages from seven to ten waiting for her father to return from the war.
