Things are going from bad to worse in the dilapidated kingdom of Ragbad; even the rag crop is failing.

To top it all off (or not), King Fumbo's head is blown away in a ferocious storm (with "ten thousand pounds of thunder").

Prince Tatters of Ragbad, and Grampa, a former soldier and the bravest man in the kingdom (population 27), set out on a three-fold quest: for King Fumbo's lost head, a fortune to save the bankrupt kingdom, and a princess for Tatters to marry.

They are joined by Bill, an iron weathercock from Chicago, who was brought to life by an electrical storm and blown to Oz.

[4] Wide-ranging adventures — from Fire Island to Isa Poso to Monday Mountain — culminate in the location and restoration of King Fumbo's head.