That Book is Straight BullShit! You dont have to life in East La or be mexican for that shit to happen to you. I read That shit for summer reading. It interested me cuz i wanted to see life in a $crap$ perspective. Supposedly from what i remember he was in a gang and started to get in hella trouble and then gets thrown out his house at 13, then he starts slangin to survive. then he ends up turning into a crack head....sounds like the story of fuckin hundreds of people in the california. nuttin special.