When Is an Orphan Not an Orphan?

When it's an orphaned sock might be one answer. I mean, seriously, unless you have a dog or cat that grabs your socks out of the laundry basket and drags them outside, your sock probably has a mate somewhere in the house. It's just that after a cursory look you give up and, voila, an orphaned sock it is.

Reading Conor Grennan's new book, Little Princes, enlightened me that this principle holds true in the world of human orphans as well. Grennan decided to spend two months volunteering at an orphanage in Nepal, mainly because it made girls in bars get all misty-eyed when he talked about it and made his planned yearlong trip around the world sound less self-indulgent.

The children—16 boys and 2 girls—of Little Princes Children's Home outside of Kathmandu innocently welcomed Grennan in and then stole his heart. Grennan returns to Little Princes after his year of travel and in 2006 founded Next Generation Nepal. What led him to begin a new nonprofit? The discovery that most of the orphans he was encountering in Nepal were not technically orphans. 

 Child traffickers preyed on remote villagers who feared the Maoist rebels in the civil war would force their children to become fighters. For a large sum, they offered to take children to Kathmandu and provide them with an education in safety. Parents sold much of their belongings to raise the money to "rescue" their children. Unfortunately, the traffickers dumped the kids in illegal orphanages (which often took money from international donors to care for the children but pocketed the money and starved the kids) or sold them into slavery.

Grennan met many children from the remote Humla region and made it his mission to reunite children with their parents. He and another volunteer established another orphanage to care for children in transition. And then Grennan began taking treks into the dangerous and remote areas to find the parents of his kids. Sharing photos and letters allowed him to see families reconnect and, where possible, reunite. Next Generation Nepal carries on his legacy, and you can help them do so.

A portion of the purchase price of Little Princes will be donated to Next Generation Nepal. But that's not the main reason to buy it. It's a great read. Grennan's story is engaging, written in a style that pulls you in, rooting for his success, or his life. If you liked Three Cups of Tea, you'll love Little Princes. Or if you like extreme adventure books, this one will get your blood pumping. Pick it up. Read a few pages. You'll be hooked.

And an orphan who isn't an orphan may get the opportunity to be in his or her family after all.