"This debut novel is a page-turning drama about familial devotion. Set in contemporary Chicago, it is the harrowing story of Dirk, a young motherless man starved for his self-centered father's approval. A rescued pit bull alters their lives irrevocably, embroiling them in the terrible misuses to which the breed is prey. As Dirk's father becomes entangled in criminal activity, Dirk must quickly come to terms with a series of legal and moral crises...