A well woven story of historical fact and adventure. Following the unlikely murder of their mother, Iris and her sister Rosie flee a New York tenement and begin their struggle to survive on the streets of a squalid slum. After three hungry days, the girls meet a self-proclaimed Street Rat, named Pete, who buys them food and treats them with kindness. A strong bond of friendship and devotion develop between these three. Loyalty to one another provides them with the courage needed to persevere through one shocking event after another as they are taken on the Orphan Train from New York City to the land of Iowa. In spite of their longing to be reunited, Iris, Rosie, and Pete are forcibly and unjustly kept apart. Each of the three children tells his/her story about the love that sustains them through painfully hard times.