Eleven-year-old Joyce doesn't mind living near a garbage dump. She likes helping her uncle, Old Dad, run it. What she does mind is being different, and getting called Dump Queen. Even worse than her classmates' teasing is knowing that her mother isn't there to shield her from the pain.

Being different doesn't bother Mrs. Fish, the new school custodian, who dresses oddly and sings in the hallways. At first, like the other kids, Joyce thinks Mrs. Fish is crazy and shuns her. But "Crazy Fish" turns out to be the one person who shares everything with Joyce-her food and her cat, her stories and her wisdom. If only Joyce's new friend could come and live with her. But can Joyce convince Old Dad, who doesn't trust anyone, that he needs Mrs. Fish as much as she does?