In this touching novel about first love, family relationships, and fitting in, a teenage boy learns about heartbreak and standing up for what he believes. Sixteen-year-old Bret is smart, creative, and always ready to challenge authority. Unfortunately, his working-class father and most of the staff at his high school in Flint, Michigan, don't appreciate his unique sense of style or his determination to speak his mind. When he meets and falls for a girl named Kylee, Bret thinks he has finally found someone to trust. Her shocking betrayal leaves him angry and heartbroken. In addition, Bret must also contend with a bullying teacher and a mean-spirited principal who would like to see him expelled. Bret's story packs an emotional punch that any teen who is an outsider -- or has ever felt like one -- will be able to appreciate. The romance between Bret and Kylee is particularly vivid, as it soon becomes clear that she is manipulating him. His naivete and strong feelings for her make the end of their relationship especially difficult; this novel offers an unusually dramatic and touching portrayal of a teen boy's pain over a breakup. Bret's relationship with his father is also complex. While the father initially comes off as the villain of the story, readers eventually understand that he is just trying to make life easier on his son, in the only way he knows how. Overall, this is an engrossing, truthful novel that will resonate with readers long after they turn the last page. -- Miranda Doyle