Sixteen-year-old idealist Indigo Washington, a student at Union High School in Philadelphia, dreams of becoming a filmmaker but also feels the pressure of her parents' expectations to find a more practical career. In the meantime, Indigo looks to her older sister, Marisol, and her friends Penny, Derek, and Boris to help her navigate the windy path of life.
Heavy loads of schoolwork and extracurricular commitments keep Indigo away from her interest in filmmaking and from the school's Earth Day celebration. When she later learns that following the event, her nemesis, Emilia Valentina, has started going out with Derek Johnson, her tennis teammate and secret crush, Indigo is angry and upset. Pushed by her rebellious best friend, Penny Charleston, she decides to make a documentary about her classmates for the spring talent show. As the show approaches, however, drama among Indigo's friends increases. Indigo is caught between her friendship with Derek and her deeper feelings for him, bearing witness to Derek's duty to overcome the social obstacles that arise from growing up in one of Philadelphia's toughest neighborhoods.
Following the trials and tribulations of a small group of teens at a Philadelphia high school, this young adult novel offers an intriguing ride through adolescence and urban youth culture.