Mama is gone and ten-year-old July has been sent to live in Plevna with grandparents she has never met. She is the new girl in school, and Priscilla, the classroom "princess," makes adjusting difficult. "God tells us to turn the other cheek," Gramps says. But for July these words of wisdom seem like climbing a mountain too tall for her, especially when her new teacher is replaced by an old enemy. July soon finds herself in court when that awful Mrs. Drunyon, "The Dragon," again insists that July has stolen her wedding ring. Mama had given July this ring before she died. What if the court does not believe her and finds July guilty of theft?