Steven is a gifted junior high school drummer that is very creative and has a great imagination and a great heart. The whole book shadows his junior year and him dealing with his 5-year old brother Jeffrey being diagnosed with leukemia. All of his friends including the girl that he has an amazing crush on feel very sorry for him and give him extra undivided attention that he feels he doesn't deserve. While Jeffrey was in the hospital Steven met a girl in their that was dealing with her own kind of disease and for the amount of time they talked she taught him the meaning a friendship, but before anymore could happen she died. Towards the end of the story Jeffrey has lost all of his hair from his sickness so Steven and many from the band shave their heads in honor of Jeffrey and makes him feel so good and normal. This story was in my words an A++ and teaches a lot about friendship and the caring for your family. Such as Steven and instead of being embarrassed and sad he was Raising the Bar for his brother.