Hip-Hop High School

the long version

Theresa Anderson is smarter than anyone knows. But with the example of her superachiever older brother, Andre, towering above her, she hasn’t even been trying. How can a girl compete against the favorite, especially since he’s a certified local hero? With her parents and her teacher always on her case and her best friend pregnant and dropped out of school, Theresa turns to hip-hop for comfort. Her favorite singers seem to understand her when no one else does. Everything changes when a new man comes into her life: Devon, whose tough-guy reputation conceals her ambition for academic success. Devon helps Theresa find her own talent and ambition, and together they set up a three-year quest to beat the SAT and get into top colleges. And then Devon gets shot in a street fight, leaving Theresa with two piles of unfinished college applications—her own and Dev’s— and time is running out.