This book is a cross between the movies Rocky and 8 Mile: inspirational fiction with a hip-hop vibe. How far would you go to make your dream come true? Troy Jones is sixteen with the dream of becoming a rapper. He doesn't want fame; he wants to help his mother who works three jobs after Troy's father was killed in a drive-by. All Troy wants to do is work on his rap lyrics. His science teacher hates rap & hip-hop music and constantly gives Troy a hard time. However, his English teacher, Mr. Salas, is an inspiration to the young, aspiring rapper. He provides Troy with the tools to improve his craft of writing hip-hop lyrics. He also reads Tupac Shakur's book The Rose That Grew From Concrete. When Troy's best friend Jimmy moves to another school, Troy is introduced to rap battles and gets hooked. His path to rap stardom is paved with battles. Along the way, he meets a love interest, suffers a big loss, meets his idol rapper and an ex-con, gets his music equipment stolen, and has doubts about his rapping ability. Troy doesn't only want to succeed; he needs to succeed.