Simon is a young orphan being raised by his uncle Tom. As his grandfather lay dying, Simon discovers how racist and backwards his uncle is. Simon's grandfather hated Simon's father and claims that he intentionally killed Simon's mother in a car crash. Simon's family narrative is cleverly knit into a news story presented to Simon by his high school French teacher as a translation exercise. The article is read by the teacher about an attempted bombing...

When Ian Lightfoot comes of age, his mother gives him the magical staff of his late father, which will let him cast a spell to spend one more day with his dad. But the spell goes awry and he has only 24 hours to set it right, so he and his older brother embark on an epic quest, with their mother trailing after, trying to protect them from a dangerous curse.