What must it be like to be among the first to set foot in a wilderness land? Fourteen-year-old Dickon Whitcomb and his sister Patience were soon to find out that day in early November, 1620, as they sighted the low, barren dunes of Cape Cod from the good ship Mayflower.

This sandy spit of land would be the Pilgrims' home, for the square-rigger Mayflower had run upon the treacherous New England coastal shoals and dared not proceed.

Near famine plagued the Whitcomb family that first winter, and Dickon's days were spent hunting for deer Indian-style—a pastime that eventually led to trouble when he was accused of hiding the kill.

Spring came at last and out of the forest came Massasoit, powerful chief of the Wampanoags. Quickly, the Pilgrims prepared for attack, as Edward Winslow and Dickon were chosen to hold council with Massasoit and his warriors.

A pact was made that day. For Dickon and Patience there was at last a secure place in a New World.

From the dust jacket