Nine Thousand Miles to Kansas chronicles the adventures of Ellie Scown, a fourth-generation San Franciscan, who becomes transplanted for what she thinks will be one year to a farm on the wild prairie of Kansas when her husband, Ken, accepts a contract at a nearby nuclear power plant. Since Ellie believes that a day without laughter is a day wasted, she finds much to amuse herself with the ticks, skunks, and rattlesnakes on the farm, her primary companions aside from her beloved dogs. Ellie also shares with the reader the many delights of earthquakes, wild fires, and tornadoes, making great fun of her own ineptitudes along the way.