What is the summary of Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes?

Eleanor Coerr’s novel is based on a true story about a girl stricken with radiation-induced leukemia and incorporates Japanese legend. The work illustrates how one child made the white crane a worldwide symbol of peace and healing. Sasaki, who was two when the bombing occurred in August of 1945, developed concerning symptoms by her twelfth birthday: swollen lymph nodes and discolorations of her lower extremities. Diagnosed with leukemia, her prognosis was grim: doctors believed Sasaki had only a year to live.
According to Japanese legend, if a sick person creates a thousand origami cranes, the gods will restore them to health. Bedridden and hoping for a miracle, Sasaki took up origami and began folding cranes. In Coerr’s fictionalized retelling, Sasaki only managed to create 644 cranes before her death on October 25, 1955. Friends and classmates finished the remainder, which were then buried with her.
Three years after her death, a memorial was erected in her honor in Hiroshima Peace Park. Many visitors still leave origami cranes near her statue, especially on the Japanese holiday, Obon Day, which is dedicated to honoring one’s ancestors.