Iska is a twelve year-old girl living on the streets in a coalmining town in Eastern Europe. The story follows her initiation journey from her small town until the Black Sea where she becomes a victime of traffic in women and girls. Street children play themselves in this story which is full of their vitality and eagerness to escape their fate.  When Iska is taken to an orphanage and asked if her parents hurt her, she is happy to answer, 'They do not beat me every day.'