Introduces the history of Memorial Day and explains how it is observed today.

"Darcy Cotterill, 30 and divorced, works at the Nantucket library during the day. She spends most nights in her backyard, gazing at the stars. She's on the brink of starting a relationship with a local carpenter, Nash, when she gets new neighbors for the summer, the most unexpected of whom are her ex-husband, his new wife, and step-daughter. As Darcy is drawn into the lives of her neighbors, she develops a crush on another vacationer, Clive, a musicologist...

When a local businessman and baseball coach disappears just before he is to portray Uncle Sam at the start of a Memorial Day race, ten-year-old Alex and his best friend Yasmeen investigate, despite their pact to stay away from mysteries.

In Charleston, South Carolina, in 1865, ten-year-old Eli and other newly freed slaves gather to honor the memory of fallen Union soldiers, an event considered to be one of the first celebrations of what is now called Memorial Day. Includes author's note.