These are novels of the adventures of teenage Joe Bass growing up along the Delaware Bay. Exciting action is balanced with full-bodied characterization. The stories have a great deal of practical mechanics in them: mechanics of moving houses on land and water, hauling and unloading logs, starting an old airplane, keeping old trucks and tractors running, salvaging old boats, making lumber, and general upkeep of practically everything. And there is humor, teenage insights into adult reactions, and social commentary. The series is presented from Joe's perspective, and his outgoing personality includes a genial humor and a perception that accepts reality and eagerly embraces the opportunities that come his way. The series is marked by a number of productive relationships between Joe and men well beyond retirement age. In Mystery Creek, 15-year-old Joe and his friends work to solve the mystery that begins with robbery, murder and arson. They spend a lot of time with an old boat in the bay where the solutions ultimately lie, and must get a very old bi-plane working so they can search the bay by air.