1969 freshman Nick Horton has problems. He suffers from bouts of depression, he's a high school social outcast, and he doesn't understand why he's not attracted to girls. So when a series of misunderstandings label him a troublemaker, he's delighted to have Jesse Gaston and Jesse's gang befriend him. Nick wants to explore his attraction to Bobby Warren, but Jesse promises to give him a new image and soon transforms the shy loser into an anti-establishment student hero. Thanks to his new reputation, Nick finds himself besieged by would-be girlfriends and expectations that he live up to his public image. As Jesse's PR campaign becomes more and more outrageous, Nick's road quickly becomes littered with ridiculous misadventures and unexpected psychedelic explorations. Meanwhile he struggles to understand his emerging romance with Bobby while dealing with the Vietnam War's continuing impact on his family and the dangerous goings-on at school. Nick's freshman year is a remarkable journey of struggle with his unwanted reputation and his deepening passion for Bobby. Is a world still reeling from the sexual revolution, Acid Rock, and the illicit pleasures of underage drinking and pot smoking ready to accept two boys in love? Will Nick and Bobby's love survive or will the world's prejudices drive them apart?