This work investigates the complex survival strategies and social dynamics developed by children living in American inner-city environments. Author Bob Adelman, a noted photojournalist, and Susan Hall utilize a combination of documentary photography and observational narrative to document the lives of youth in urban settings. The text argues that the street serves as a primary classroom for developing autonomy, social hierarchy, and resilience in environments often overlooked by traditional sociological studies.

Experts recognize this book as a significant visual archive of urban childhood during the mid-20th century. Readers frequently note the historical value of the photography in capturing social conditions that have since evolved in American cities.