Cape Town, South Africa. One day at the beach, Kathy crosses a border she never knew existed when she approaches white children to play. She is made to feel like something dirty because of the color of her skin. Sheltered in her working class neighborhood, among family and friends whose quarrels are as intense as their joy, Kathy was innocent of the pain of racism until that moment. Now, when her light-skinned cousins ignore her on the street, she understands why. When her Uncle Reg says, "This is not our country" she wonders "Where do we belong?" Set in the 1960s, Case's autobiograhical novel is a child-centered exposé on the injustices of Apartheid and its impact on the identity of one young girl. (Ages 9-11)

Living a sheltered life with her loving family in Cape Town in the 1960s, Kathy comes to realize that she is considered a lesser person by many because of the color of her skin.