Sycamore Will wants a pet dog so badly-but a pet skunk might be just as nice! On a farm in the Cumberland Valley of Pennsylvania, Meph the skunk and his littermate, just three days old, are caught in a flash flood and nearly drown in the cold waters. By the time their mother comes to their rescue, only Meph can be saved. Sycamore Will, tired of being ordered around the farm by his father, is building a fire in the hearth of the summer kitchen when he hears a scratching sound. To his delight, he