It's 1935 and from a child's eye view, the hard times of the Depression era are becoming more and more real. Each day, coming home from school, there is something else missing. First the sow pig, then the cow, then the truck. On one wrenching day the beloved hunting dog is sold. Finally the whole family packs up in the car and leaves--the children wonder where, but their parents are silent. Suddenly, the car stops at the edge of the road and Mother leans into the back seat, giving Mary Jake a handkerchief with something tied inside and the instructions to walk down the path into the forest, take the LEFT fork into town, and present the handkerchief at the stone house.
So begins the adventure of a girl who chooses her own in path (neither left fork nor right), dyes herself in a stump full of walnut-colored water and disguises herself as a boy. "Jake" Smith soon meets Miz Bennett and hires on to help with her garden and animals. In this rags-to-riches story, rich with descriptions of Alabama during the Depression a strong female character copes with abandonment with courage and resilience.