"Why wouldn't the gods remove my scar and heal me? It made no sense that I should suffer this way." Twelve-year-old Micay walks around her fifteenth-century Incan village shielding the scarred side of her face that inspired the cruel name Millay, or "Ugly One". She escapes to her huaca rock, avoiding the villagers who shun her. Her world shifts dramatically when a stranger gives her a sorry-looking baby macaw. The bird becomes her dear companion on a journey that ultimately leads her to a new role as shaman in Machu Picchu's Sacred Sun City. Told in an engaging storyteller's voice, this is a stirring tale of a girl who finds her own strength. AGES: 9-12 AUTHOR: Leanne Statland Ellis was inspired to write this novel by several visits to Peru and to Machu Picchu. She lives with her family and teaches third through fifth grades.
