The following version of this book was used to create this guide: Cadow, Kenneth M. Gather. Candlewick Press, 2023. Gather is divided into 34 chapters, with a final chapter not numbered. The novel tells the story of Dorian Gray “Ian” Henry, a teenage boy living in rural Vermont with his single mother, Brandi, and his adopted dog, the titular Gather. The plot of the novel is often interrupted or told out of order as Ian recalls his life before and after the death of his grandfather, Gramps, and his grandmother, Gram, subsequently leaving to care for her sickly sister and his father, Dwight, abandoning the family.

The novel opens with Brandi returning from the hospital. Brandi is struggling with addiction and is often unable to hold down a job. Though initially she does not want Ian to keep Gather, who he found as a stray in the woods, she eventually relents when she sees how much Ian cares for the dog. Ian and Brandi struggle with money, though Ian is resourceful and skilled at fixing machinery and finding food. Ian does not want anyone to discover the extent of his family’s hardships, wary of the idea of being taken into foster care and losing the land he lives on, which has been in his family for generations.

Things begin to look up for the two of them as Brandi finds a job working at Angel’s Café and Ian finds work caring for his elderly neighbor, Mrs. Ellsley. Brandi begins to pursue a relationship with Russel “Russ” Berriman, who works for his family’s heating business. Though Ian is initially somewhat uncomfortable with this, he becomes supportive of Russ and his mother, feeling that Russ is a good influence on her. Ian also begins to pursue a relationship with his new, wealthy classmate, Sylvia Paerson. Ian grows close to Sylvia and her family, particularly her father, the eccentric former professor and self-described socialist, John Paerson, though Ian notes the ironic contrast between John’s political outlook and his status as a wealthy landowner.

Things take a turn for the worse when Ian and Brandi learn that Ian’s father, who had been supposedly responsible for paying their property taxes, has been delinquent on them, and the two owe tens of thousands of dollars to the government. The stress of the situation causes Brandi to relapse, which also leads to her and Russ breaking up. Ian returns home one day to find she has overdosed. Devastated and grieved, Ian requests to remain on his family’s land and be emancipated but is denied. Instead, he is told he must live with his father in Memphis. Ian’s friend’s father Danny offers to drive Ian there, promising he will be allowed to keep Gather. However, midway through the journey, Ian learns he cannot keep Gather, as his father and stepmother are expecting a baby. Ian decides to run away with Gather, spending a few weeks living off the land and fending for himself. Eventually, he comes into contact with his teacher, “The Sharpe”, who finds him and brings him home to Vermont. His grandmother comes back to live with him, and Ian looks forward to the future.