A gritty, deeply moving story that shows how the human spirit can triumph in the harshest of worlds. The deserved winner of the Children's Book Award when it was first published. This is the story of children who live on the very edge of destitution. Dani and Mamo, and the gang of street boys that they join, have nothing and share everything. Their courage, loyalty and determination enable them to survive in the harshest of worlds.
Inspired by the true story of an African childhood lived on the edge of destitution, award-winning Elizabeth Laird's The Garbage King takes readers on an unforgettable emotional journey. When Mamo's mother dies, he is abandoned in the shanties of Addis Ababa. Stolen by a child-trafficker and sold to a farmer, he is cruelly treated. Escaping back to the city, he meets another, very different runaway. Dani is rich, educated - and fleeing his tyrannical father. Together they join a gang of homeless street boys who survive only by mutual bonds of trust and total dependence on each other.
It's the elemental friendship story of fear and hope that will draw in readers. Booklist
Author
About Elizabeth Laird
Elizabeth Laird is the multi-award-winning author of several much-loved children's books, including The Garbage King, The Prince Who Walked with Lions and The Fastest Boy in the World. She has been shortlisted for the prestigious CILIP Carnegie Medal six times. She lives in Britain now, but still likes to travel as much as she can.Read more about the author here.