Mohammed "Sammy" Sabiri's life is just about everything his father would have watned. Decades earlier, Mr. Sabiri had fled from Iran to get away from the conservative, theocratic regime that was coming to power after the revolution there. He arrived in Canada before settling with a wife in upstate New York. Mr. Sabiri completed a high level of education dealing with microbiology and won a position that made him quite successful.

As a result, Sammy was attending a prestigious private school. He had two great best friends. While they went to the local public school, that didn't mean they weren't there for him when he needed them. They always found him to be a little different since, as a Muslim, he had to pray at regular times throughout the day. He had to make sure to avoid certain foods and all alcohol because of his religious beliefs. With that said, they never treated him differently because his skin was darker and he had a different faith.

That could not be said for everyone. Some of the guys at his private school did see him as different. In fact, they believe that he and his family might be terrorists ... just liked the guys who took over the plains on 9/11. As a result, they did everything they could to make his life miserable, and he felt like there was little he could do to fend off their bullying because their families were rich and had made major donations tothe school.

Now the Sammy is 15, he has felt a lot of pressure from his dad to be successful and do what is right, and he feels like he is falling far short of his father's dreams. Perhaps that is why his father has seemed to become so distant lately. That all seems to be about to change when his dad comes home to announce a weekend trip to Toronto so they can attend some games. It will be a special, one-on-one weekend.

That all falls apart when his dad comes home just before the weekend to announce that he has to cancel their plans. Mr. Sabiri claims it is because he is going to have to take the place of a colleague in speaking at a conference, but Sammy doesn't want to hear about it. He just feels betrayed ... and something about it seems fishy.

As Sammy looks into what his father has been up to, he starts to believe that his dad is having an affair and doesn't know what to do about the. In reality, Sammy doesn't realize how wrong he really is. That reality comes crashing in in the middle of the night when FBI agents storm their house days after the weekend in question. Mr. Sabiri, Sammy, and his mother are taken into custody for questioning because the American government believes Sammy's father has been working with a cross-border terrorist cell to contaminate the water supplies in Toronto and New York City.

While Sammy has felt a growing distance between himself and his father, he knows that his dad would never do that ... or would he. His father has been so secretive lately....

As he and his mother bear the brunt of the media, their neighbors, and the surrounding community that focuses on them because of their ties to a potential terrorist, it becomes clear that racism, fear, and their differences are making the situation so much more difficult. Sammy feels that there are few he can turn to for help: a teacher at his school, his two best friends, his mother, the lawyer they have hired to help with his father's defense, and their imam. He can't help but wonder if they really can do anything for his father so he decides to take things into his own hands.

He sets out to investigate what really happened. There is no questions that there are secrets involved, but he can't help but doubt that the secrets tie his dad to terrorism. The question is whether he can find the truth and the evidence to help his dad. Then, he can only hope that the truth will win out and get his dad out of prison and the limelight.

This really is a powerful and moving story that keeps you on the edge of your seat. There is no question that America has been confronted with the issue of anti-Islmicism, and this explores just what that means for American Muslims. Sammy is really a great narrator to present his story and make you think about how easy it is for teens (and adults) to mistreat someone just because they are different. In a sense, this ties in with the idea of bullying, as well.

This was another one of those books that I had trouble putting aside because it was so interesting. I really wanted to know what was going to happen to Sammy and his family. I wanted to know what secrets placed them in so much danger and whether they would be able to get past them to find their way back to a normal life again.