1. The Children of the Rural Poor. Contemporary thinking on children's work. Deconstructing and reconstructing children's work. Methods -- 2. Between the River and the Sea. The choice of Kerala. Poomkara. Children's frontier -- 3. Growing Up in Poomkara. Class and kinship. The household domain. Ambiguities of childhood -- 4. Poomkara's Small Fry. Big and small fishermen. Boys in the world of fishing. Privilege and duty -- 5. Hanging by a Thread: Coir-Making Girls. Women and merchants. Girl's work. Work for love -- 6. Kerala Fisheries' Invisible Nets. Labour relations in fishing. Children's work. Weapons of the small -- 7. The Coir Industry's Saving Angels. Girls' work. The blessings of domestic production. The tragedy of coir -- 8. Conclusion: Rural Children's Exploitation.
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 210-222) and index.