For Fatima, Maria and the other unseen children of Hussain Khan's carpet factory, Iqbal Masih's arrival is both the end of hope and its beginning.

It is Iqbal who tells them that their family's debt will never be cancelled, no matter how many inches of progress they make in their rugs, no matter how neat their knots or how perfect the pattern they weave.

But it is also Iqbal who is brave enough to talk about the future, to plan their escape - and to encourage thechildren to stand together against their master's injustice.

Who promises Fatima that next spring they are going to fly a kite 'whatever happens.'Based on a true story, this is a poignant and lyrical novel about child labour and human rights issues.