A first generation American, 13 year-old Waris' passion is soccer. The day Coach Perkins announces there's a center midfield position on the soccer team, Waris practices hard for the position he has dreamed of. When Coach Perkins finally announces his selection and Waris gets his reward, his authoritarian father has already announced his plans to take Waris on a trip to Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan for seven months. His father wants Waris to spend less time playing soccer and more time improving his grades in school. Waris is crushed as he leaves behind his mother whom he loves very much, his friends Alex and Nolan and his soccer team in the United States. Worst of all, he must spend seven months with his authoritarian father in his ancestral land which Waris has no interest in. Waris reluctantly embarks on a journey that will test him in every possible way. His already bad relationship with his father gets worse as he progresses into the trip. He is challenged by the customs of a country he finds hard to relate to. Initially, a mysterious female housekeeper is his only human contact until he makes friends with whom he has adventures and solves mysteries. His will to do what is right and his determination to never quit guides him towards bravery and individuation. By the end of the trip, Waris has grown and found himself. He rescues and reunites a boy with his family. The boy had been stuck across the dangerous border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. By the end of the story, Waris has progressed to the point where he empathises with his distant father and helps resolve his father's life-long internal conflict.