Fergal Banfield, an eccentric lad who collects cans, is surprised to find some unexpected--and even alarming--things in a few of his treasures, and when he meets Charlotte, another collector, they begin an investigation that leads them into dangerous territory.

When his father, who is in the United States illegally, becomes injured and unemployed, eleven-year-old Sandro is determined to help his parents raise money for his little sister's heart surgery by collecting scrap metal to recycle for cash.