Who would believe Paula if she told them she'd had a conversation with a battery hen called Minny? Nobody would Twelve-year-old Paula Brown is thrilled when she and her parents move from a flat in town to a country cottage. There's even a farm right next door And that's where Paula's adventures with Minny begin. But Paula can't tell anyone about her encounter with amazing Minny; it must be kept secret - especially from her new friend Jamie - because it's Jamie's father who imprisons a quarter of a million hens in battery cages. Minny knows that Paula is kind, because tears come to her eyes at the sight of thousands of hens cooped up in tiny metal cages. She begs Paula to return to shed 10: 'You see you're our only hope, ' she calls down from her cage, high up on the top tier. Secretly, Paula works out a plan to rescue Minny in the dead of night. But has she the courage to face her parents' anger - not to mention the fury of Farmer Dredge?