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Knopf Books for Young Readers
July 2015
On Sale: July 14, 2015
352 pages
ISBN: 0375847073
EAN: 9780375847073
Kindle: B00ONUVQKQ
Hardcover / e-Book
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Young Adult | Contemporary
The summer of 1983 was the summer hip-hop proved its staying power. The South Bronx is steeped in Reaganomics, war in the Middle East, and the twin epidemics of crack and AIDS, but Raymond รขโฌลSmilesรขโฌย King and Guillermo รขโฌลNikeรขโฌย Vega have more immediate concerns. Smiles was supposed to be the assistant crew chief at his summer camp, but the director chose Cookie Camacho instead, kicking off a summer-long rivalry. Meanwhile, the aspiring b-boy Nike has set his wandering eye on Sara, the sweet yet sassy new camp counselor, as well as top prize at a breakdancing competition downtown. The two friends have been drifting apart ever since Smiles got a scholarship to a fancy private school, and this summer the air is heavy with postponed decisions that will finally be made. Raw and poignant, this is a story of music, urban plight, and racial tension thatรขโฌโขs as relevant today as it was in 1983.
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