Ravi has just moved to the United States from India and has always been at the top of his class; Joe has lived in the same town his whole life and has learning problems--but when their lives intersect in the first week of fifth grade they are brought together by a common enemy (the biggest bully in their class) and the need to take control of their lives.

Neither a long list of rules, nor the inability to find the perfect gift--Cheddar Jam--nor being locked in a bathroom with a juggling bear will keep quirky fourth-grader Oggie Cooder from attending neighbor Donnica Perfecto's birthday pool party.

Two cats that are as different as night and day are nevertheless best friends.