"Jude never thought she'd be leaving her beloved older brother and father behind, all the way across the ocean in Syria. But when things in her home-town start becoming volatile, Jude and her mother are sent to live in Cincinnati with relatives. At first, everything in America seems too fast and too loud. The American movies Jude has always loved haven't quite prepared her for starting school in the US -- and her new label of "Middle Eastern," an identity she's never known before. But this life also brings unexpected surprises -- there are new friends, a whole new family, and a school musical that Jude just might try out for. Maybe America, too, is a place where Jude can be seen as she really is."--

Sent with her mother to the safety of a relative's home in Cincinnati when her Syrian hometown is overshadowed by violence, Jude worries for the family members who were left behind as she adjusts to a new life with unexpected surprises.