A young boy named Palmer lives in a town called Waymer, which celebrates an annual Pigeon Day by releasing pigeons from crates to be shot in the air. When the book opens, the town's 63rd annual Pigeon Day is intended to raise money for the city's playground. Ten-year-old boys in Waymer can accept the honor of picking up the wounded birds that have not yet died from a gunshot wound and wringing their necks to "put the pigeons out of their misery."