In 1926 twelve-year-old Lee lives with his grandparents in a small village in rural China. He lives with his grandparents because his parents are dead. It is a difficult life but made easier by the love Lee shares with his grandparents.

But now Lee must leave his grandparents, his village, and all that he knows. Before his parents died, they spent all of their money buying a "paper son slot" for Lee to go to America. Being a "paper son" means pretending to be the son of a family already in America. If he goes to America, he will have the chance for a better life. But first he must pass the test at Angel Island Immigration Station in San Francisco. Only then will he be allowed to live with his new family. If Lee makes even a single mistake, he could be sent back to China, back to his grandparents.

But Lee knows his grandparents want a better life for him. He can't let them down.

Based on the accounts of Chinese immigrants who passed through Angel Island comes the fictional story of one young boy in search of a better life in America. 

From the dust jacket