Inspired by a real life experience, this novel for older readers tells the heart-rending story of a 7 year old Jewish girl, Malka, who becomes separated from her mother during their flight from Nazi-occupied Poland to the relative freedom of Hungary. Interweaving narratives tell of Malka's stubborn fight for survival and of her mother's desperate efforts to locate and rescue her daughter; their complex characters and dilemmas combine to give a vivid and harrowing picture of this historical period.