Jake Warren is a profoundly gifted, 11-year-old misfit who lives outside the Adirondack Park in Malone, New York. In the summer of 1963, after the sudden death of his father, Jake's mother sends him to camp in the heart of the Adirondack Park where he befriends three campers who are misfits in their own homes and schools as well. Penny Dausch, the 11-year-old daughter of an Adirondack Park Ranger and granddaughter of an Adirondack Guide, excels in art and history and has recently been inspired by Rachel Carson's 1962 publication, Silent Spring, to save the environment for future generations while Ty Williams, the 11-year-old son of SUNY at Albany English professors, is gifted in English and speaks two other languages. Add 9-year-old Quinn Miller, who is already studying calculus and plays violin in local, regional and national competitions, and you have a quartet caught between childhood (age-wise) and adulthood (intellect-wise) that will make the typical summer camp experience anything but typical.