A swarm of wings fill the Tenejapa sky with color. Seeing all those kites makes Jacinto?s heart beat faster. Although he is only eight years old, Jacinto must travel to San Cristobal to help his father, Emiliano, at the marketplace.
His childhood joys and games left behind, Jacinto must learn to cope with the reality of the hard work he must face each day. Lying in his uncomfortable bed at night, his stomach nearly empty, he curls up like a snail in its shell and dreams of turning into a kite and flying away to discover a better world, one where he can be with his mother and his sisters.
This story about child labor and the sudden awakening of one child to a life of hunger and hardship is written with tenderness and sensitivity.
