Strange things are happening to Howell. His mother disappears after a car crash in the mountains, and his uncle insists that only he, Howell, can find her. And what of the unknown Latino blind boy who rescues Howell from school bullies, the Haitian-Creole deaf girl stopping him from falling into a pit that magically appears in his bedroom, and the Native-American girl appearing in his town, accompanied by a large grey wolf? Howell's uncle insists everything relates to Howell's upcoming birthday and his need to journey through the Crossingway to complete the Transfer-whatever that is.