Four children have spent their lives cramped in a Manhattan boarding house, dreaming of space, freedom, and a real home. When their family acquires a hotel by a lake in New Jersey, the Dorrance siblings finally see their chance. Dorothy, the resourceful leader, orchestrates their summer escape to what they proudly call 'Our Domain' - a place where adventure finally seems possible beyond the suffocating walls of their cramped urban existence. Carolyn Wells captures the particular hunger of childhood: the longing for room to run, the thrill of claiming territory as your own, and the fierce loyalty siblings share against the uncertainties of adult life. The children throw themselves into managing their new domain with earnest enthusiasm - their first home-cooked meal, their interactions with the kind but eccentric neighbor Mr. Hickox, and the small victories of making a life on their own terms. It's a tender snapshot of early twentieth-century childhood, where freedom tastes like lake water and independence means learning to cook breakfast for four without burning the eggs.
