High school is hard enough without having something that sets you apart and makes you different. For Sam, it’s tormenting. Sam has Tourette’s syndrome, a disease he inherited from his father who passed away when he was two. Life at school is one thing, but life at home has become a nightmare. One day while out for a run a beautiful girl sprints into his life triggering a chain of events that changes his life and his whole idea of who he is. This touching novel exposes the pain and struggle that comes with having a disability. On his voyage Sam, picks up pieces of the person he never had the chance to know and discovers that he has more of his dad in him than the ticks and jerks. Ironically his journey brings him to a small town on the west coast called Jerk, California. Its in Jerk that he finds himself, and he finally catches his father.
With unflinching candor, Cain reveals jockey Laffit Pincay's greatest triumphs and fiercest struggles: the famed races, the unrivaled self-discipline, the relentless drive, the cheating, the betrayals, and the violence.