It’s 1888 and 12-year-old John Nicol begins working at the Forth Bridge construction site, fully aware of the project’s dangers. Four boys have already fallen from the bridge into the Forth below but John has little choice―with his father gone, he must provide for his family―even with a crippling fear of heights.

John finds comfort in the new Carnegie library, his friend Cora and his squirrel companion, Rusty. But when he is appointed to cruel Cain Murdoch’s Rivet Gang, John must find the courage to climb, and to stand up and be heard.

Based on real people and events, Rivet Boy blends fact and fiction to tell the story of one boy’s role in the building of the iconic Forth Bridge―Scotland’s greatest man-made wonder.