12-year-old Lalani Sarita foresees no future. Her mother is ill and unlikely to recover. Her stepfather and stepbrother are cruel and vindictive. Her life is cooking, cleaning, mending, and errands. She is blamed for everything — even the drought. Then Lalani decides to set out to do what no one else has ever accomplished — travel to the legendary Mount Isa, towering on an island in the north.

Many others have died on this quest. How can a timid young girl in a tiny boat hope to survive the epic test of the archipelago? Inspired by Filipino folklore. Your young readers will be moved by Lalani’s powerful story of perseverance as she travels across a vast ocean and risks everything to save her family and village.