Helen has been tattooing paper cranes down Sakura's spine for years.
Each crane is hand-poked with traditional Japanese techniques, each session a ritual of pain and precision that Sakura insists upon. Helen doesn't understand why her best friend chooses such an agonizing process, or why the cranes must follow an exact path down her back.
But tradition demands that a thousand paper cranes will grant one wish.
And some wishes are worth any amount of pain.
One Thousand Cranes is an achingly beautiful story about love, friendship, and the courage to hope for the impossible.