This is the previously untold, true story of how racism nearly destroyed a small Southern community.

Based on actual events that happened between 1958 and 1960 in Front Royal, Virginia,  this autobiographical, coming-of-age story follows the lives of two teenage boys, Davey MacLaren, who is white, and Jackie King, who is black. The two are caught up in the calamitous events when their small, Southern community becomes the first place in the nation where the public high school is closed to avoid being integrated. Although their experiences are very different, their dreams and aspirations are similar. They confront racial prejudice, fear, anger, and uncertainty. It is a time of upheaval, struggle, and confusion for the teenagers.
The school closing in 1958 is a critical event which splits the community into two opposing camps – the moderates who recognize that change is inevitable and the hard-line, “old South” segregationists who are determined at all costs to maintain the status quo. This event and the serious repercussions that follow, threaten to derail permanently the young people’s education and the direction of their lives. Both Davey and Jackie find themselves on perilous paths where they have little control over what will happen to them.
The book reveals the depth and complexities of the human side of this civil rights story – presenting a wide-angle montage of the experiences of both white and black families and gives clarity and dimension to the historical events. The multiple plot lines of this story combine memorable characters, psychological tension, humor, 1950s nostalgia, and even a murder mystery. 

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