Salem seemed a strange and forbidding place to young Nat Holden when he arrived there from faraway China. His father was dead and Nat had come to live with his father's stern old aunts.

Life in Salem with his aunts was certainly different from Nat's life in China. He had been happy in China; he had had fun with his father; all his friends had been cheerful. In Salem he was lonely, very lonely. He had no friends; his aunts were strict and aloof; and his beloved willow trees did not grow there.

To make matters worse, Nat was sent to school, where his pride was shattered. That's when he decided to run away, back to the land he knew and loved.

Exciting and spine-tingling adventures follow, with midnight escapes, the theft of a "diamond", and a deftly plotted surprise at the very end.

Mr. Bulla tells a rousingly good tale in simple words and rhythmic sentences for beginning readers, and Mr. Henneberger's virile illustrations describe the changes in Nat's life, from utter loneliness to complete acceptance of his new home. The book has a page-to-page quality of storytelling. it is also a valuable lesson in living with others.

From the dust jacket