Gr. 8-12 Despite living in near poverty, Teodoro “T” Avila’s dream is to change his life during his junior year of high school. Fueled by a blossoming romance with Wendy Martinez and abstinence from video games, T’s goals are to better his grades, get into college, be with Wendy, and make something of himself. He partners with his best friend, Caleb, and things start to look up. But when T’s older, near-legendary brother, Manny, comes home from Iraq with extreme PTSD, T’s focus is split between maintaining his studies and monitoring his brother’s safety. Without warning, Xochitl, their forcefully passionate sister, tricks Manny and T into a summer road trip designed to help Manny heal. [Read More]
When Loose Ends Meet 