A small boy enjoys his relationship with his grandmother and his great-grandmother, but he learns to face their inevitable death.

The inhabitants of Green Knowe become involved with black magic when a modern-day witch attempts to find books of witchcraft supposedly hidden in the old house by a mad seventeenth-century alchemist.

A string of pearls that Duncan saved for years to buy for Lizzie becomes a family heirloom and something of exceptional value to their great-grandaughter in her time of need.

A young boy listens to his great-grandmother's tales of Green Knowe as it used to be and, gradually, as past and present blend, he shares the strange adventures of the former inhabitants.

Neema's struggle to complete an essay on the topic "Who Am I" for her freshman English class is complicated by the arrival of Kampala, her Indian great-grandmother who has come to Australia chasing her dream of flying, and although they do not speak the same language, the two find common ground in skateboarder Gull Oliver.

When Naomi's absent mother resurfaces to claim her, Naomi runs away to Mexico with her great-grandmother and younger brother in search of her father.