Azalea is not happy about being dropped off to look after Grandmother Clark. Even if she didn't care that much about meeting the new sixth graders in her Texas hometown, those strangers seem much preferable to the ones in Paris Junction. Talk about troubled Willis DeLoach or gossipy Melinda Bowman. Who needs friends like these!
 
And then there's Billy Wong, a Chinese-American boy who shows up to help in her grandmother's garden. Billy's great-aunt and uncle own the Lucky Foods grocery store, where days are long and some folks aren't friendly. For Azalea, whose family and experiences seem different from most everybody she knows, friendship has never been easy. Maybe this time, it will be.
 
Inspired by the true accounts of Chinese immigrants who lived in the American South during the civil rights era, these side by side stories—one in Azalea's prose, the other in Billy's poetic narrative—create a poignant novel and reminds us that friends can come to us in the most unexpected ways.

Discussion Guide

Awards and Recognition
Bank Street Best Children's Books of the Year, starred

Reviews

“Writing in alternating prose and verse voices for Azalea and Billy, respectively, Scattergood paints an honest portrait of two young characters dealing with quick judgments, prejudice, and racism.”

—Kirkus Rivews

“Azalea’s narration is interspersed with occasional entries from Billy’s perspective, written in verse, that show his strength of character and desire to succeed, despite facing clear challenges in the segregated South.”

—Publishers Weekly