Ninth grade, that's when it all began for Bobby Cherno. He'd never minded school, and he'd always had friends to play soccer or go sailing with. Emmet Sundback changed that. Big, mean Emmet--nobody liked him, but everyone followed his lead. And Emmet, well, he just didn't like Jews, especially the one he called Chernowitz.
What began with one bully soon became a terrifying, tormenting campaign of prejudice and hatred that saw Bobby's friends turning into enemies. He told himself he could live with it, that Emmet and the others were all talk. But then came the burning cross on the front lawn, the swastika on the family car. Suddenly Bobby couldn't deny what was happening, not to himself, not to his parents. The time for ignoring was over, now it was time to fight back