This is the story of love, commitment and the flowering of the human spirit against the background of South Africa's apartheid. Frightened that their baby sister Dineo will die, thirteen-year-old Naledi and her younger brother Tiro run away from their grandmother to Johannesburg to find their mother, who works there as a maid. Their journey illustrates at every turn the grim realities of apartheid -- the pass laws, bantustans, racism, the breakdown of family life. The opulence of the white "Madam's" house contrasts starkly with the reality that Naledi and Tiro face -- that their baby sister is suffering from starvation, not an incurable disease.

Author Biography

Beverley Naidoo was born in South Africa and came into exile in Britain at 22. She began writing to open a window for young people onto apartheid. Her challenging novels have won a number of awards.