Down Sand Mountain

It’s the fall of 1966, and 12-year-old Dewey Turner is determined to start the school year right. No more being the butt of every joke. He’ll be cool — a Lone Wolf like his older brother, Wayne. But an accident with shoe polish dashes these hopes — and earns Dewey his worst nickname yet. He finds an unlikely friend in Darla Turkel, the only person at Sand Mountain High who is more of an outcast than he is. Through their friendship, Dewey comes to learn a whole lot about his small town, and about the world outside it, too: things about racism and segregation, secrets, and standing up for what’s right.