The book is unusual in that it looks at the wider contexts and struggles for change for those growing up poor in Thailand. Childhood in Thailand has tended to be seen through the lens of sexual exploitation and abuse by Westerners and Thai children seen as uniquely vulnerable to commercial sexual exploitation. While Bolotta never underplays the difficulties these children face, and their risk of multiple forms of exploitation, his book is ultimately a hopeful and uplifting one and the children emerge from its pages as resilient, resourceful agents of change, albeit ones negotiating a tough and challenging world, where freedom and success remain perilous. Bolotta paints a vivid picture of life in the poor, informal settings of Thailand.