Alberto is a lonely old man living in the town of Allora as the town’s only coffin maker. He is given the bodies of Allora’s dead so that he can build them their coffins and place them into their graves. One day, a bird Alberto has never seen before flutters into his home. This bird is soon followed by Tito – a lonely little boy whose existence was never known to Alberto. Alberto finds Tito to be great company, but no matter what, Alberto cannot get Tito to open up to him. Tito is scared and very cautious, but of what? Alberto is not sure.

This is an adventurous story that centers on the life of Timothy Patrick Horrigan, who is a chipmunk. Timothy, who is unnamed at this point, is chased out of his home in the dead of the night by a fire and finds shelter in the wood pile outside of house that is home to Vietnam veteran Mikey Horrigan. Mikey takes and comforts Timothy as well as gives him his name. Timothy grows fond of his new home and roommates who are mice.

The story begins in Deadwood, South Dakota, where Ryder is staying at the home of her Grandma, or “Granny,” who plays an important role in Ryder's life since Ryder's mom has passed away. Ryder and her father live in Los Angeles, California, where he is a TV show creator of Super-Rory-Us. When Ryder goes home, her dad is very happy to see her, but she's unsure about his girlfriend, Bernice, and her 3 daughters, who Ryder calls “The Three Happys." One night she turns on the TV and watches Super-Rory-Us. Suddenly, shazam! Rory jumps out of the TV!