I've just started reading this book, so I'm not very far. But what I've read so far is the book takes place during the winter in the early '70s and the main character, Susie Salmon has 2 siblings. A older sister named Lindsey and a younger brother named Buckley. Susie always took the shortcut through the dried out cornfield on her way home after school, but on December 6th when she was walking home her neighbor, Mr. Harvey, was standing in the cornfield. As if he was strickly waiting for, and he was. He asked her if she wanted to see something he built. With all that said, that's pretty much what I've read so far.