"Mama, come quick! Esther stuck a ribbon in her nose!" Poor Leah is forever having to bail one of her sisters out of crazy trouble. She's the oldest, and now that Papa has died and Mama works so hard, Leah has to be more responsible.

It's hard for Leah, having her sisters tagging along, or worrying about Mama's safety. And it's hard to be brave on the day the soldiers come and search the house on Walenska Street.

But the house is filled with warmth and love, too. And Leah is proud to be the one who can read the letters that come from the cousins in America, all the way to the little town in Russia. The letters keep Leah in touch with a world beyond her own. And when she writes the cousins back, she can sit and think... and dream.

From the dust jacket