Lincoln Mendoza is talking on the phone with his best friend, Tony Contreras. After someone broke into the Mendoza’s house and stole their TV and stereo, Lincoln’s mother moved them from San Francisco’s downtown Mission District to the suburb of Sycamore. Lincoln’s mother is a graphic artist with her own successful company.

Tony and Lincoln talk about the upcoming basketball game between Lincoln’s new school, Columbus, and his old school, Franklin. Lincoln doesn’t want to play against Tony and his former teammates. Tony says he would trade places with Lincoln if he had money, but Lincoln insists he dislikes his new team: “There’s no brown people here. Everyone’s white […] and our coach is a nasty dude. He’s got trouble inside his head” (4).

After the call, Lincoln opens his geography book and sees a picture of a camel driver. Before Lincoln goes to school, he and his dog, Flaco, go outside and see James, a second-stringer on the Columbus basketball team. James lives across the street.

Columbus Junior High is a clean school where the kids are well-dressed and well-taken care of. The other students’ clean appearance clashes with Lincoln’s worn and secondhand clothing, which Lincoln wears because he wants to, not because he needs to.