Maya, a young American on the run, is sent to Chilo,̌ in a remote part of Chile, her grandmother's homeland, where she records in her diary her adjustment to a new country, her drug problems, her romantic life, and other developments.

A true story about a teacher in a racially divided school who gives her students what they've always needed, a voice. Erin Gruwell comes to a southern California high school bubbling over with naive optimism. She quickly discovers that her unruly classroom is not easily won over by her good intentions. After a few floundering attempts to connect with her students, Gruwell gives them the assignment of keeping journals about their own lives, This assignment...