Jaime Adoff

Barely a month has passed, and Keith is being forced to move from big-city Brooklyn, New York, to small-town Hollow Falls, Ohio. Keith enters the eighth grade at his new school, not surprised to find he’s the only one with an Afro, a wardrobe straight out of the ’60s, and a zealous appreciation of Jimi Hendrix, the greatest guitarist who ever lived. Struggling to start over, Keith finds comfort in Jimi’s music, wisdom in his lyrics, and a connection to the man himself—Jimi was a left-hander who loved to write music and poetry, just like Keith. Through the storm of his tragic loss, Keith begins to see the few rays of happiness in this tiny new town--especially when the beautiful Veronica, long blond hair falling everywhere, looks his way.
Soon, however, Keith discovers there may be a journey even more painful than coming to peace with his father’s death—coming to peace with his father’s life. As powerful secrets from his dad’s past come to light, the man Keith once worshipped suddenly becomes the man he hardly knew. Everything is going to be different now.

(Pub date: 9/1/05/ Jump at the Sun/Hyperion Books for Children)