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 troubleand, 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 cooluntil Ali and Noodles and Needles find themselves somewhere they never expected to besomewhere they never should've beenwhere the people aren't so friendly, and even less forgiving.

Author: Jason Reynolds

ISBN: 9781442459489

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers