Four children live on an island that is the repository for all the world’s garbage. Garbage arrives, the children sort it, and then they feed it to a herd of pigs. The pigs are beautiful, but fierce, with sharp teeth and insatiable appetites, and they eat anything. When a boy washes ashore in a barrel, the children must decide what to do with him—is he more of the world’s detritus, meant to be fed to the pigs, or is he one of them? The novel explores questions about community, environmental responsibility, and the possibility of innocence.
 

Following a whirlwind romance, Isabel Grady has moved halfway around the world with her new husband. Far from her apartment in New York City, Isabel finds herself living at the top of an ancient, vine-covered palace. The colors of Nepal are brighter than those at home. The smells are more intense. The sounds are dizzying. The dense heat of the tropical summer gives way each afternoon to torrential rains. Overwhelmed by the strangeness of the city but mesmerized as well, Isabel thrills to her new life even as it throws her off balance.