Shy Layla is unwilling to open up about herself or share why she wears a head scarf that sets her apart from the other students, until kind teachers and classmates help her feel more comfortable with the other first graders.
A fourteen-year-old boy in Brooklyn who has grown up in the foster care system discovers respect and love with a parochial school girl and with the eccentric couple who take him in.
While riding on a hot subway train in New York City, Oscar and his family meet the Island Lady and experience the sights, smells, tastes, and sounds of the Caribbean islands.