Doug hates that his family had to move to Marysville. Hates that his dad is quick to temper (that's why they had to move in the first place). Hates that his brother is a jerk, and his other brother--also kind of a jerk--is in Vietnam. Hates that he--well, he doesn't want to talk about that. Doug has a chance to make Marysville his own, but it's going to take a lot. Getting out of his delinquent brother's shadow is just the beginning. The rest is up to a girl, some birds, and Doug himself. 
 (Hmm. Gonna have to work up a better booktalk than THAT.) 
 It's good--there's a lot going on, some of it given far too cursory a treatment and easy resolution. The overall somber tone is tempered with bits of levity, and it's really nice to see a kid with a really good relationship with his mom--even if it does factor into the plot in a significant way. I liked this; I thought it was a fantastic book, but the appeal to middle-schoolers may be limited. It's going to need some hand-selling, and I'm going to have to do a better job than the above.