In the quaint southern town of Petal, Mississippi, Joe Ellis Keene is surrounded by a cast of colorful characters. There's a UFO chasing constable, a wise one-armed gardener, Cap'n Graybeard, a music loving macaw, and the "old farts" at The Country Kitchen, who are determined to keep secret the location of an impending explosives demolition. School's out and twelve-year-old Joe Ellis is rollicking through a summer of hilarious adventures...