When his abolitionist parents decide to move to Kansas territory to help Kansas enter the Union as a free state, Charlie Keller, forced to leave his Massachusetts home and beloved dog behind, must learn to come to terms with prairie life. Simultaneous.

STORMS ARE BREWING. When Charlie and Papa arrive in Lawrence for supplies, they find the bustling Kansas town threatened by border ruffians from pro-slave Missouri. Papa decides to remain behind with other free-soil settlers to defend the town, so Charlie must drive the wagon back to the family's isolated claim by himself. At home a different sort of storm is brewing—gray skies, bitter cold, and vicious winds warn that a prairie blizzard is coming. Charlie is always getting into trouble for daydreaming and forgetting his chores. Now he has to show he's grown-up enough to help Momma, his sisters, and his newborn baby brother survive in their tiny cabin in the snow.

Danger Close To Home Papa is in danger for helping to rescue a free-state settler who was unjustly arrested by Kansas' proslavery sheriff. He has gone into hiding, and Momma and the Keller children are alone in their remote cabin while marauding border ruffians are roaming the countryside, looking for livestock to steal. But there's a lot more at stake at the Keller homestead than their chickens and cows. Charlie has come upon Lizzie, a runaway slave girl trying to make her way to freedom in Canada, and the Kellers are hiding her at their cabin. With the violence in Kansas Territory escalating, the Underground Railroad isn't running. Can Charlie and his family keep Lizzie safe until she can escape from Kansas?