This book brings together the talents of some of the most insightful, introspective, and intelligent, yet often disregarded voices in New York City, its youth. These voices are expressed in this collection of poems, raps and short stories and are a window into the complex and often difficult experience of adolescence. These authors are high school and junior high school students that are enrolled in Grand Street Settlement's Community Achievement Project in the Schools (CAPS). The primary goal of the CAPS program is to help students overcome barriers to attending school and to provide them with youth development and skill building opportunities. Grand Street Settlement has implemented this program in the three different schools represented in this book; Norman Thomas High School, Louis D. Brandeis High School, and Middle School 61. These young people have come together to share a piece of their lives as they continue to persevere through various hardships, express their creativity and shine their light.