When eleven-year-old Eddie Dickens's ill parents become "a bit crinkly round the edges," he is taken by his great-uncle and great-aunt, Mad Uncle Jack and Mad Aunt Maude, and embarks on adventures that involve strolling actors, St. Horrid's Home for Grateful Orphans, and a carnival float shaped like a giant cow.

As his awfully exciting adventures continue, young Eddie Dickens finds himself grappling with a hot-air balloon and falling head-over-heels for a girl with a face like a camel's.