In Bed Stuy, New York, a small misunderstanding can escalate into having a price on your head even if you re totally clean. This gritty, triumphant debut that "Publishers Weekly "calls a funny and rewarding read captures the heart and the hardship of life for an urban teen.
"A lot of the stuff that gives my neighborhood a bad name, I don t really mess with. The guns and drugs and all that, not really my thing."
Nah, not his thing. Ali s got enough going on, between school and boxing and helping out at home. His best friend Noodles, though. Now there s a dude looking for trouble and, somehow, it s always Ali around to pick up the pieces. But, hey, a guy s gotta look out for his boys, right? Besides, it s all small potatoes; it s not like anyone s getting hurt.
And then there s Needles. Needles is Noodles s brother. He s got a syndrome, and gets these ticks and blurts out the wildest, craziest things. It s cool, though: everyone on their street knows he doesn t mean anything by it.
Yeah, it s cool until Ali and Noodles and Needles find themselves somewhere they never expected to be somewhere they never should've been where the people aren t so friendly, and even less forgiving."