The story of Katy Carr, the lanky, good-hearted tomboy who learns to be gentle and patient, is continued in this third instalment of Susan Coolidge's popular Katy series. When Mrs Ashe, a widower, discovers that her visiting nephew has scarlet fever, she sends her only daughter Amy to stay with the Carr family. Amy finds a true friend in Katy Carr, and Mrs Ashe invites Katy to join them on a trip to Europe. After some initial reluctance, she agrees. We follow Katy as she is reunited with her old friends from Hillsover, including the mischievous Rose Red Browne. Katy's journey takes her to rainy England, where she finds out what constitutes a 'fine day' for the English and what a Dickens-commended muffin tastes like. The Carr family from her most popular Katy series was modelled on Coolidge's own family, with the protagonist Katy modelled on Coolidge herself.
