The little orphan Heidi lives in the summer with her reclusive grandfather Alp-Öhi and the eleven-year-old goat herder Geissenpeter on an idyllic alpine pasture in the canton of Graubünden. Her carefree life comes to an end when her aunt Dete takes her to Frankfurt am Main to keep company with the young but paralyzed Klara Sesemann. Here, Heidi learns to read and write and becomes friends with Klara. Eventually, she returns to her beloved mountains. In the second novel, Klara visits Heidi, but their reunion is disrupted by the jealous Geissenpeter. So, Heidi decides to take the helpless Klara with her to the alpine pasture.