Calvin Willeford has a special aura that makes light bulbs burst and televisions flicker on and off. At the same time his country's most important space probe--the Trailblazer--has short-circuited near Uranus. Calvin wonders if his aura has anything to do with it.
Then a UFO lands in his backyard. His old friend Dandelion, the alien who looks like a large yellow cat, offers to help Calvin and his best friend Kathy fix the Trailblazer. But weird Sheriff Pippenger shows up, hoping to catch an alien or two on videotape, and arrests Calvin's father. And before they know it, Calvin and Kathy are a billion miles out in space, wondering if they'll ever get back home again.