High in a tree, Possum peers at the outside world from mother's pouch, along with her eight brothers and sisters. The babies soon leave the safety of the pouch, however, and together the family wanders through the forest. When the old possum samples turtles eggs, Possum eats some too. When the mother climbs a tree, Possum follows after her, aided by her sharp claws an strong naked tail. Enemies, such as the fox and the great horned owl, take the lives of some of Possum's brothers and sisters, but Possum and three others survive to set up homes of their own. Possum, alone now, forages for food, hibernates in the winter, mates in the spring, and finally raises a family—building a nest and nursing her babies just as her mother did before her.

In gentle but realistic prose, Mr. McClung tells the life-cycle story of the only pouched mammal native to the United States. His calm narrative style and pleasing illustrations convey with accuracy and charm the inherent continuity of the natural world.

From the dust jacket