Astrid is anxious about her family's camping trip because she is afraid of the dark (and bears), but her twin Apollo is looking forward to the experience; and Astrid is doing okay, despite the bugs and the dark, until she hears the scratching outside the family's tent--but Astrid is determined not to let her father face the threat alone.

Astrid and Apollo each have a special, surprise birthday gift planned for the other, and Astrid thinks she has guessed what Apollo is giving her, but as she puts more clues together, she realizes she is in the middle of a birthday mystery. Includes facts about the Hmong.

Astrid, Apollo, Eliana, and their parents are at the state fair and enjoying a scavenger hunt based on the five senses, but none of them can figure out what it is that little Eliana wants.