Why is it that all kids love their parents, usually pretty darn unconditionally? In this book, two boys forge an unconventional friendship and spend the majority of the book seeking fathers who are now out of the picture for whatever reasons. Dane, a hoodlum-like boy who uses his fists to solve his problems. He's only one detention away from being expelled from his high school. Billy D, is a couple years younger than Dane, but the catch is he has Downs Syndrome. They meet one morning when Billy D. tries to follow Dane to school. He hopes by following him, it avoids being beat up by other teens. I enjoyed this book for many reasons. First of all, I like how Dane and Billy D. actually learn from each other. Billy D. teaches Dane about how important it is to be able to control your temper, not solve everything with your fists and Dane teaches Billy D. how to be a teenager. The mystery surrounding Billy D's dad sparked my interest and was another reason I really enjoyed this book. It was fun trying to solve all the clues found in Billy's special atlas, I laughed along with the boys as they discovered real towns with hilarious names. It like them on mini quests and sometimes into trouble. Lastly, the romance is involved in this story, the sweet and innocent kind, just the way I like it. Also, no love triangles either - yay! The gal Dane fell for called herself Seely. She was a total tom boy, riding skateboards and knowledgeable about cars. She even wore her hair in a boyish like style. They shared a first kiss and tensions slowly build up to this moment. It was so fun as they kissed how Dane slowly forgot about all the other girls he'd ever kissed. What a powerful kiss! I appreciated the time it took for them to work up to the kiss. Ironically, the boys are searching for dads, but Seely is blessed to have two. The only aspect I didn't like involved Billy D. He is portrayed as being a high functioning Downs Syndrome kid, but somehow I never really felt he was delayed. He was quite a bit smarter then I would have expected, making the story just a wee bit unbelievable in his case. Pacing for this story was moderate, it felt right for the story. I really yearned to know where Billy's father was and why he left Billy D. This is set in modern times, the language and the writing style was griping and real. The conclusion, worked well. It ended in a realistic way. Leaving me hoping for the best for all my favorite characters. Somehow I know they will all be ok in the end.