A whirl of smoke from the sugarhouse was the only hint of spring on the snowy day that Marly, Joe, Mother, and Father drove out from the city to open the small farmhouse on Maple Hill. A miracle was happening even as they arrived, according to their neighbor Mr. Chris, the first miracle of the new year when sap begins to rise in the maple trees and it is time to make syrup. Soon the woods and fields around their new home would provide one miracle after another, and Mr. Chris promised Marly that she would see them all.

More than anything, Marly was counting on miracles—not only the ones that would happen outdoors but also the slower, more important kind that happen inside people. The family was moving to Maple Hill in the hope that just such a miracle would occur, for ever since Father had come home from a prisoner-of-war camp, he had been tired and jumpy and cross.

As the weeks went by, the bickering and unhappiness they had known gave way to a growing warmth and understanding. The midnight rescue of a family of foxes, an unexpected visit from the local hermit, and a frantic effort to save the maple-sugar harvest were only some of the events that filled their exciting first year at the farm and drew the four of them together once more.

With rare feeling for the beauties of the changing seasons and with a remarkable gift for characterization, Mrs. Sorensen has written a moving and richly rewarding book. Like Plain Girl and Curious Missie, this story of the miracles Marly discovers at Maple Hill will not soon be forgotten by its readers and will be read again and again.

From the dust jacket