Based on actual events, this story is told through the lives of a fictitious family living in an economically depressed section of Richmond, Virginia during an autumn of a year in the mid-1980s. The book gives an eye opening account of day to day life in a problem plagued high school and its surrounding neighborhood, while providing a graphic look at the many ills that affect our society. The family struggles to survive in a place where the American Dream seems nonexistent and bright futures only exist in fairy tales. The surprise ending will leave the reader searching for answers and wondering how there could be such a fine line between serenity and full fledged violence.