• Age: 9 to 12
• Grade: 4 to 7
• Reading age: 9 to 12

Mariano and his friends are helping their parents turn an old Brazilian coffee plantation into an inn. The children sleep in a shed, which is being converted into guest rooms. One night they hear crying. Gradually, the ghost of Rosario, a young slave from the late 1800s appears to them and tells the story of why she is so sad.

Hans Christian Andersen Award-winning author Ana Maria Machado's storytelling skills and social conscience come together in this powerful and moving book that reveals the evil of slavery in a real, immediate and unforgettable way.

Ana Maria Machado is one of the world's most distinguished writers for children, with more than 100 books published in her native Brazil and in more than 18 other countries. She has won the Hans Christian Andersen Award and the Iberoamerican Children's Literature Award, and she has been elected to the Brazilian Academy of Letters — the first writer for children to be so honored. She has also been chosen for the honor list of the highly prestigious Dutch Prince Claus Award. Groundwood has published two of her novels, Me in the Middle (Américas Award Commended List) and From Another World, and her picture books Wolf Wanted, which won the Hors Concours (FNLIJ), and What a Party! Ana Maria lives in Rio de Janeiro.

Ana Maria Machado's profile page

Lucia Brandao is an illustrator in Sao Paulo, Brazil.Visit Lucia Brandao's blog: http://www.luciabrandao.blogspot.com/Follow Lucia Brandao on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Lucia_Brandao

Lucia Brandao's profile page

Luisa Baeta is a Brazilian translator.

Luisa Baeta's profile page