Amanda loves having a first-day-of-summer birthday party. She can invite anyone she wants - and that doesn't mean fatso Ernestine Harris. Ernestine hates having school start the week after her birthday. But it's great having a real Harris family party - and she isn't going to invite stuck-up Amanda Clay. But somehow Ernestine winds up at Amanda's party and Amanda comes to Ernestine's. And in between the parties there are twelve weeks of summer. The summer the girls turn 11, means summer camp for Ernestine and Amanda - Hilltop, a camp for African-American girls, for Ernestine, and integrated Camp Castle for Amanda. Swimming lessons, pillow fights, practical jokes, and new friends are all part of camp - as well as some surprises for both girls when things don't turn out the way they expect. When it's finally time to come home, Ernestine and Amanda have both learned a lot about new experiences, and about belonging.