The story of a 14-year-old named Sara-moody, unpredictable, and on the brink of womanhood-and how her life changes when her younger, mentally retarded brother disappears.

When Dane, a bully, refuses to hit Billy D because he has Down Syndrome, Billy takes that as a sign of friendship and enlists Dane's help in solving riddles left in an atlas by his missing father, sending the pair on a risky adventure.

Twelve-year-old Megan's efforts to provide a real Christmas for her multiply handicapped brother and the rest of the family cause problems with her best friend and some other schoolmates.

"Marcus Vega mide seis pies de altura, pesa 180 libras y luce un incipiente bigote. Cuando tienes esta apariencia y apenas estás en octavo grado, te conviertes en una figura imponente y, al mismo tiempo, en un blanco fácil. Después de un altercado en la escuela que resulta en una suspensión para Marcus, su madre decide que es hora de un cambio de ambiente. Los lleva a él y a su hermano menor a Puerto Rico para pasar una semana con parientes a...