The author, Shyima Hall was eight when her parents sold her into slavery. In Egypt's capitol city of Cairo, she lived with a wealthy family and serve them eighteen hours a day, seven days a week. When she was ten, her captors moved to Orange County, California, and smuggled Shyima with them. Two years later, an anonymous call from a neighbor brought about the end of Shyimas' servitude-- but her journey to true freedom was far from over. Now a US citizen,...

Seventeen-year-old Alex seriously messes up during her senior year at an Orange County, California high school, skipping classes and staying out all night at Hollywood night clubs with older guys, in an effort to distract herself from some unpleasant realities.