Can life be beautiful after a terrible trauma?

Find out how Danny learned to overcome his loss.

A special bond is formed in the hospital between Danny ”” a mischievous, curious and very bright ten-year-old who has lost a leg and an arm ”” as well as his mother ”” in a terrorist bombing ”” and Autumn, a young journalist sent to interview him before his tenth operation.

Autumn wants to publish Danny’s story because she believes he is a hero, but Danny says he isn’t a hero at all; he was simply sitting in a restaurant waiting for his food when the terrorist came in and blew herself up. During their conversation, Autumn tells Danny about her son and her life as a single mother. He misses his own mother, and harbors a suspicion that the journalist keeps coming to see him because she is interested in his newly widowed father.

˃˃˃ A maturity process story

Autumn thinks that Danny should have the tenth operation, which would basically be plastic surgery to remove the shrapnel from his face and minimize the scarring. He does not want to forget: he would rather have a scarred face that will always remind him of his mother and all that he lost. And it would also be a reminder of the reality of life in Israel, a reality in which innocent children pay the price. During the difficult days preceding the operation, still tormented by indecision and struggling against the pain, Danny undergoes a maturity process that will prepare him for his release from the hospital. He learns not to be jealous of his sister, who survived the bombing with only a few scratches. He learns not to be afraid of the Arab nurse who wants to give him an injection. He develops a new and different sense of humor and comes to realize that despite his grief and loss, life goes on and can be beautiful. He discovers that he can enjoy life if he only reaches out for it.

˃˃˃ A story about injury and recovery

The book is about the reality of living in Israel. About a terrorist bombing, and how it affects one little boy and his family. It’s heart-wrenching, but hard to put down.