Summary

The novel opens in the autumn of 1992. David Greenfeld lives in Jamaica Plain, Boston and is beginning sixth grade at Martin L. King, Jr. Middle School, referred colloquially as the King. David is white and the King is predominantly black. Most white students go to a different middle school but David was rejected based on a lottery system. David’s parents refuse to put him in a private school, despite his begging. At the bus stop, David meets Marlon Wellings, who is reading a magazine about the Boston Celtics. On the school bus David sits with Kevin, who is a friend of David’s from middle school and one of the few other white students at the King. At school, the students are greeted by the principal, Dr. Jackson. David, Kevin, and Marlon are in an advanced homeroom together. Their teacher, Ms. Ansley, advises...