Miss Patricia Higgins's painting holiday in Italy isn't going according to plan. She'd hoped to paint many outdoor scenes in the picturesque fishing village but as soon as her easel is set up, the local children gather around asking her to paint their portraits. Hoping to avoid the crowds, Miss Higgins goes out very early one morning. This time she encounters only one child, Arturo 'Sardines' Camuffo, who says, rather surprisingly, that he doesn't want a portrait of himself. He'd rather Miss Higgins painted a picture of his friend, the bronze angel sitting atop the church spire. How does the son of a poor local fisherman become friends with a huge statue of an angel? For the price of three ice cream cones, Miss Higgins is about to find out.