Jim Qwilleran, newspaper columnist and Moose County's richest resident, is intrigued to hear about the mysterious disappearance of an unidentified backpacker somewhere in Fishport, a village near Mooseville where he has a log cabin. With its hundred miles of lake for a vista and its great dome of sky, Mooseville is just the place to spend a short summer vacation. Rest and relaxation, however, are out of the question, for Qwill finds himself dragged into some hightly innovative plans for this year's fourth of July parade.

Above all, he is determined to dispel the rumours circulating that extraterrestrial beings may be responsible for the missing backpacker...