A young orphan boy puts his secret life in the walls of a Paris train station in jeopardy when he begins stealing parts from the man who runs the toy shop in the station in order to finish rebuilding an automaton that he and his father had started; strange things start happening when the Grace family moves into the Spiderwick house, and when Jared Grace finds Arthur Spiderwick's field guide, he discovers the truth behind the magical estate; after a man with the power to bring books to life by reading out loud finds himself trapped in a story with his daughter, he must use his power to get them out of danger.