The author and her identical twin sister grew up on a hilltop 13-acre farm near the rural central California coast in the 1940s and '50s. In addition to their dog and cat pets, they raised pigs and lambs for their 4-H projects. The barnyard "clan" also included chickens, rabbits, domestic pheasants and an assortment of wildlife. The characters in her book reflect experiences and antics of their happy childhood years.