Sibs Kestral and Bowman have gotten themselves into some seriously hot water. Unhappy with the strict authoritarian rule of Aramanth, (a world that could be either parallel to ours, or somewhat futuristic, depending on your point of view) they refuse to play along with the system of tests that every citizen must take and pass to advance to into a higher level of society. Once their family is blacklisted, they are busted down to the lowest level, and Kestral is forced to go to a “special school” for “old children,” a fate she soon learns is worse than death. So she breaks out of her school prison and hits the road with Bowman and their friend Mumpo in search of the “tongue” of the Windsinger, an ancient instrument that could restore tolerance and freethinking to the people of Aramanth. On their way, they meet up with the kindly, dirty Mud People, the war-hungry Chakas and Barakas, and worst of all, the terrible Morah and its’ army of smiling, deadly Zars. Fast-paced action, cool characters and some pretty scary bad guys will make this English import popular with fans of The Giver and Harry Potter.