14-year-old Ben Johnson lives in a picturesque (if you are an adult), boring (if you are a teenager), country town of Werrinup in Western Australia. However, Ben's life is turned upside down when he is accused of a theft that he did not commit. While in pursuit of the real thief, Ben discovers that Werrinup is a gateway to a number of parallel universes known as the Parallax. As he travels through these alternate universes, Ben finds out that he has a sister, Katherine, whom he didn't know about; that his mother, Veronica, is a Guardian of the Parallax; and that huge purple insects named Welkin want to bite him and that all the worlds of the Parallax are in danger. The only hope of stopping the Welkin is to find the key to the Reading Room. They are the last line of defence. So they stand, bickering siblings, ready to face the foe armed... with a library card.