Amina is teen girl growing up in Mogadishu during the Somalian civil war. Her father is an artist, and she takes after him, preferring to use the canvas of the city rather than traditional supplies. When her father is arrested and her brother is taken, she must help her frail grandmother and pregnant mother survive. Together, they cope with hunger and staying safe from the constant shootings and bombings in their city. Amina continues to write her poetry and make street art, making a name for herself as an artist who shows the resilience of Somalis.

USBBY Outstanding International Books, 2016.

Author grew up on the U.S. Mexico border, and considers El Paso home though she lives in Northern California with her family. Editor has been a primary school teacher-librarian and EAL teacher for more than twenty years.

New South Wales. Originally published in English in 2013.

Amina lives on the edges of Mogadishu. Her family's house has been damaged in Somalia's long civil war, but they continue to live there, reluctant to leave their home. Amina's world is shattered when government forces come to arrest her father because his art has been officially censored, deemed too political. Then rebel forces kidnap Amina's brother, forcing him to become a soldier in Somalia's brutal ongoing war.

Although her mother and grandmother are still with her, Amina feels vulnerable and abandoned. Secretly, she begins to create her own artwork in the streets and the derelict buildings to give herself a sense of hope and to let out the burden of her heart. Her artwork explodes into Mogadishu's underground world, providing a voice for people all over the city who hope for a better, more secure future.

'This touching story brings home vividly the dangers of creating art that seeks to be true - and all the more so during a vicious civil war, interwoven with religious extremism. Thankfully, Amina's teenage curiosity and courage also signal hope.' - Beverley Naidoo, author of Carnegie Medal Winner The Other Side of Truth