The stories begin after the father has moved his family to a rural area onthe Quebec side of the Ottawa River, where he has taken a job paintingfleur-de-lis on tin trays in a nearby factory. For the children this means theygrow up in delightful wilderness surrounded by people and customs which arecompletely new, but leaves their English speaking, non-swimming mother inisolation. The family is cut off from much of the world, but there is much ofthe world around them. They learn of their individuality through the culturaldifferences they find between themselves and their nearest neighbours, the RomanCatholic family down the way. They learn about sex and despair first handthrough the few adults around them. And they are constantly exposed to life anddeath, and miracles through their constant contact with the river itself.