Nothing is forever in the magical world Jon-Tom has found himself trapped in and as such, the duar he uses to create his music-based magic breaks after a battle to save Clothahump from a group of house burglars. He does this by accidentally stepping on a fallen battle axe, cutting himself, and falling back onto the duar and breaking it.
The need to find an expert capable of repairing the rare instrument sets Jon-Tom off on another adventure where he and his friend, the otter Mudge, search for a repair shop for his instrument. Along the way they encounter pirates, cannibals, talkative porpoises, a flying horse who is scared of heights and a beautiful female otter, Weegee, who becomes the target of Mudge’s amorous intentions.
On the way, Jon-Tom accidentally finds a way back to Earth - to Texas, to be exact - and some of the anthropomorphic animals of his new world, including some very nasty characters, cross over as well. After some unpleasant experiences with American criminals and police, Jon-Tom makes the unequivocal decision to go back to what he realizes is now his true home.