'Lonely Hugo, who has developed a hunchback due to a childhood illness, passes much of his time traveling through the treetops in the nearby forest, where he makes friends with the intelligent, peace loving blats, and helps to defend them from their enemy, Lord Sna, king of the snakes, who keeps blats as slaves in his dungeons, and plots to let hunters into the forest to capture all the free blats and turn them into jam. Lonely Hugo, who has a hunchback, passes his time in the treetops in the nearby forest, where he makes friends with the peace loving blats, and helps defend them from Lord Sna, king of the snakes, who keeps blats as slaves in his dungeons, and plots to let hunters into the forest to capture all the free blats and turn them into jam. (Publication summary)