Eleven-year-old Jambalaya McSweeny's parents have dumped her off at her Aunt Root's cottage for the entire summer--an aunt she has never met in a town she has never visited. Jam's never had any luck making friends; she's always felt like an odd duck. To help make the time pass, she takes on three summer jobs at a sandwich shop, a wax museum, and on a newspaper route. She falls into a busy routine that she enjoys, but just as she's getting used to her life in Spoon-by-the-Bay, she discovers that dogs and cats can talk. A genius scientist cat, Plumpington Sausageworth, enlists Jam's help to find a lost Chihuahua, Petey. Jam must decide if she will embark on a dangerous mission or just keep living her safe life. Jam's story is one that we all must eventually face: What will you do for your loved ones? Will you muster up the courage to do the right thing? And above all, Jam's story relates the surprise and magic of friendship: you never know where and when you will find a new friend.