Twins Ford and Firebird Tucker have grown up in their family's swamp in a cabin hidden from the rest of the world.  The only thing between the Tucker family and the encroaching city a short distance away is a massive, ever-changing billboard set off the main interstate leading into said city.  The teens have never set foot in a school, their grandmother takes care of their education.  Their mother died shortly after their births leaving them in their father and their grandmother's care. 

By day, Ford helps his father fish for eel in the swamp in order for them to be sold to the nearby smokehouse.  Firebird is a bit of a wanderer and is often left to do her own thing.  Her hobby is making purses from the eel skins. 

When wildlife preservation people enter the swamp looking to turn the swamplands into a federal reserve, Ford and Firebird soon discover that their family's secret lifestyle may be threatened.  For Firebird, this is a chance to explore the world beyond the billboard--a world she only dreams about.  For Ford, fear of the unknown sinks in. 

BEYOND THE BILLBOARD is an exceptional story.  I was gripped from the beginning and felt for these two thirteen-year-olds.  As unworldly as they are, their strength is apparent from the very start. 

The story moves at a rapid pace from start to finish keeping the reader figuratively glued to the pages.  By the ending, I was left wanting more.  I would love to see the author return to these two characters in future novels.