Four determined homeless children make a life for themselves in Padma Venkatraman's stirring middle-grade debut.
 
Life is harsh in Chennai's teeming streets, so when runaway sisters Viji and Rukku arrive, their prospects look grim. Very quickly, eleven-year-old Viji discovers how vulnerable they are in this uncaring, dangerous world. Fortunately, the girls find shelter-and friendship-on an abandoned bridge. With two homeless boys, Muthi and Arul, the group forms a family of sorts. And while making a living scavenging the city's trash heaps is the pits, the kids find plenty to laugh about and take pride in too.
 
After all, they are now the bosses of themselves and no longer dependent on untrustworthy adults. But when illness strikes, Viji must decide whether to risk seeking help from strangers or to keep holding on to their fragile, hard-fought freedom.
 
About the Author
Padma Venkatraman was born in Chennai, India, and became an American citizen after living in five countries and working as an oceanographer.
She is also the author of A Time to Dance (IBBY selection, ALA Notable, Notable Books for a Global Society, and New York Public Library Best Book), Island's End (ALA Best Book for Young Adults, CCBC Choice, and South Asia Book Award winner), and Climbing the Stairs (Bank Street Best Book, ALA/Amelia Bloomer List, YALSA Best Book for Young Adults, and Julia Ward Howe Award winner).