TRACY BEAKER'S NOT exactly sure what her mother does, because Tracy has been in foster care for as long as she can remember. Maybe one day Tracy's mother will show up and reclaim her long-lost daughter, but in the meantime, Tracy's doing everything she can to take care of herself—even though she has to share her birthday cake. Then a journalist shows up to write a story about their orphanage, and she and Tracy strike up a special friendship.