RIBBONS OF THE SUN Twelve-year-old Rosa begs to go with her father to the city to  sell the flowers her family grows, and when the great day finally comes,  she can barely contain her excitement.  But her joy turns to despair  when she realizes the real reason for her trip to the city--her  impoverished family has been forced to sell her into service as a maid.  Assaulted and humiliated by the patron, she is thrown out on the hostile  city streets to fend for herself and the baby she expects. Alone and  without hope, her beliefs shattered, Rosa learns to survive and triumph in  this emotionally violent but deeply spiritual coming of age story.