Although they grew up as the wretched orphans they always imagined themselves to be, the Willoughby siblings also became heirs to the the Melanoff candy company.Everything has turned out just splendidly, except for one problem: Richie Willoughby, son of Timothy Willoughby, is an only child and is quite lonely.

Winifred and Winston Poore have long admired the toys of their neighbor Richie Willoughby. However, with their father selling decades-out-of-date encyclopedias door to door in Alaska, their only hope for such largess is to finally befriend the mysterious boy next door. But just as Richie finally begins to make friends to share his possessions with, selling sweets is made illegal, and the family's fortune is put in jeopardy. To make matters worse, his horrible Willoughby grandparents—frozen atop a Swiss mountain thirty years ago—have thawed, remain in perfect health, and are making their way home again.

What is the point of being the reclusive son of a billionaire when your father is no longer a billionaire? What is the future without candy in it? And is there any escaping the odiousness of the Willoughbys? These are the profound questions with which Newbery medalist and ignominious author Lois Lowry grapples in The Willoughbys Return.