Description:

The first book in the Benjamin Drum Trilogy - A precocious boy is sent by his dysfunctional suburban parents to spend a summer with his eccentric aunt and her unruly clan in a remote mountain cove. There he becomes acquainted with the creatures of the place, and meets Ethan, an old hermit who points his way to self-discovery.
As the summer of his becoming nears an end, the boy embarks alone on an exploration of their creek down to a river, the Long Broad, that carries him away through the mountains to the Laurel, a land apart from the boy's world and out of time.
Along his way, the boy meets wise and powerful women who will shape his wandering. Elizabeth, the ghost girl, the first soul he meets in the Laurel, offers him food and companionship. Callie, from her domain at the Crossing, wields power that touches all the lives in Laurel. Liza spins out music that will sustain the boy throughout his trek. Lizbet wants him dead, and her mother, Min only wants him gone. Mathilda, daughter of the Stone, inflicts a mark the boy will wear ever after. Lizzie, the herb woman reveals to him his true name, and shows him the way to Thomasene, who from her hermitage atop the Alone, sustains all the souls in Laurel.
Formidable men also help or hinder the boy on his journey. Charlie Charon, the ferryman, gives him advice he ignores, nearly ending his quest before it is begun. The Trader, Robberlee shows him a place to begin, and issues an invitation that, had the boy taken it, would have given him a different life. Jude, the Gray Man and his sons want to turn the boy for a profit. Mad Davey, the Keeper of the Wood, gives the boy shelter and the love that eluded him in his own world. Old Aengus takes him along the Rising to the Herb Woman. The reclusive monk known as Owl draws hidden strands of power that bind all in Laurel and pull the boy inexorably toward his destiny.
Through it all a dark and mysterious Rider pursues the boy. Neither knows their eventual confrontation will bring resolution and deliverance to them both.