Karen Kingsley and her husband have been given a honeymoon trip to Poplar River in the Canadian wilderness by her husband's cousin, Bobby. Karen immediately finds herself at home in the wild and develops into an expert fisherwoman who looks forward to returning to Poplar River. But all is not well with Karen, despite the birth of a daughter and musical skills that bring her more offers than she can accept. She loses twin sons, then finds her husband mysteriously depressed. In a sort-of reverse Dr. Doolittle, Karen's encounters with the animals of Poplar River are first told through her eyes, then through the eyes of the animals who tell their sides of the stories.