While trying to prove that he is good enough to be on his high school's varsity basketball team, Nick must also deal with his parents' divorce and the erractic behavior of a troubled classmate who lives across the street.

Max and his dad love their time together. Weekends mean pancakes, pizza, spy games, dog walking, school projects, and interesting neighbors! Every weekend brings a small adventure as third-grader Max gets to know his dad's new neighbor - and learns some new ways of thinking about home.

Twelve-year-old Mitch, spending the summer with his grandparents at Bird Lake after his parents' separation, becomes friends with ten-year-old Spencer, who has returned with his family to the lake where his little brother drowned years earlier, and as the boys spend time together and their friendship grows, each of them begins to heal.