This is the touching and endearing story of Little Meg and her trials and difficulties as she does her best to look after 'her children' after their mother dies. Father is away at sea and is expected every day, but when father's ship comes in he is not aboard! With the help of her new friend and neighbour Kitty, she finds out that he was 'took bad' on the other side of the world, who knows when or if he will ever make it back. Meanwhile, Little Meg must take care of Robby and baby. There are better days and worse days...

Bunyip Bluegum the koala sets out on his travels taking only a walking stick. At about lunchtime, feeling more than slightly peckish, he meets Bill Barnacle the sailor and Sam Sawnoff the penguin who are eating a pudding. The pudding is a magic one which, no matter how much you eat it, always reforms into a whole pudding again. He is called Albert, has thin arms and legs and is a bad-tempered, ill-mannered so-and-so into the bargain. His only pleasure is being eaten. The book is divided into four "slices" instead of chapters. (Introduction by Wikipedia)