The Shingle Weaver's Picnic

It's 1941, and the chill of something evil is spreading around the world like a black plague. Suspicion and fear have replaced the trust of innocence of humankind. The news of unheard-of violence and brutality presses heavily on the hearts of mankind.

What is tomorrow going to look like? What has happened to the world as we once knew it? World War II begins its escalation, extending its chaos in all directions, including the outer shores of America, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Annie Elizabeth Jordan (known to most as Cricket) can't make any sense of the turbulence that is swirling around her life. This thing called war, newspapers headlines that are hidden from her, the heartache, the fears of loved ones all around her are very disturbing, and no one seems to want to explain it all to her.

She is looking forward to her annual visit with her grandparents, who live in the Northwestern United States. This summer will be slightly different than past visits, for she will be traveling on her own, because her mom is on travel restriction due of the baby that is to arrive in the early fall.

Her grandparents live in the small lumber town of Everett, Washington, in a blue-collar neighborhood of hardworking families with a plethora of children. In many ways, Everett is the quintessential example of small-town America in its day. It is peopled with an abundance of vividly unique, colorful characters. To name just a few, there is Doc Miller, who is involved at the start or end of life for most of the population. He also closely guards with the ferocity of a pit bull, the secrets given to him at times of stress or sorrow. Sheriff Davis functions in much the same way when it comes to his town folk. He looks upon every resident as his own personal responsibly.

The death, the murder of one of the children in Cricket's neighborhood, sends more than a shock wave through the town. Nothing like this has ever happened before. Who could have done such a horrific thing? Who living among them could be so evil? It is beyond explanation to Cricket, but she would soon see her grandfather, a retired lawyer and judge, untangle this twisted scenario with its many suspects and astonishing conclusion.