Nome, Alaska, 1925.

Balto lives a quiet existence as a sled dog—until tragedy strikes.  Dozens of children in the remote town of Nome become sick with diphtheria.  Without an antitoxin serum, they will perish—and the closest supply is 650 miles away! No roads exist in the icy wilderness. The only way to get the serum to Nome is by sled.  But can the sled dogs deliver the serum in time? Heading bravely into a brutal blizzard, Balto leads the race for life.

From the back of the book