Summary

In Chapter 1, the third-person, omniscient narrator relates that when a proposal is brought before the Board of Aldermen in the winter to allow dogs to go leash-free in Baldwin Park, the town of Littlefield quickly divides on the issue. For years, dogs have gone leash-free in the meadow of the park located next to the elementary school, but now that a formal proposal has been made, people take sides. Signs begin to appear at the park, urging people to respect the rights of all to use the park. When an unleashed dog runs into a scruffy-looking young man on a bike who threatens to shoot the dog, the signs get stronger in tone. The aldermen vote to postpone a vote on the park until a task force can review everything. The town then quiets down. The spring and summer come on, and families and...