Abandoned by her father and ostracized by her fellow villagers Shallah never imagined she would lead anything but a small solitary life. But when a mute boy is found on the green and the village council seems poised to cast him out she elects to accompany him home though she's no idea where it might be. Crippled by her own insecurities and the taunts of the village naysayers Shallah struggles to protect her remarkable young charge from larger-than-life enemies and an unavoidable fate too terrible to contemplate.