The year, 1946. The place, Maui. Thirteen-year-old George Kahula's carefree life is ruined when his best friend is arrested as a leper and deported to Kalaupapa. Now the authorities are looking for George. He runs from the police and sneaks home only to find his grandparents missing. George realizes his only hope is to get to the neighboring island of Molokai and find his birth parents. But can he do it without drawing the attention of the authorities? It won't be easy. He's penniless, alone, and there's no one he can trust. George's determination to find a place where he belongs will change...

Before Dorothy was swept away in a tornado to Oz . . . Before the yellow brick road . . . Before the Scarecrow hung in a cornfield . . . Young Frankie Baum and his sled dog are buried under an avalanche of ice and snow. To his surprise, when they dig out they're not in Alaska anymore, but in a fantasyland of magic and wondrous sights. The story chronicles Frankie's first adventures in the Land of Oz and his royal appointment as the Royal Historian of Oz.