Louis Sachar: Kleine Schritte, Lehrerband

Small Steps, the follow-up novel to Holes, tells how the protagonist, Deo, fares after his release from the juvenile reformatory Camp Green Lake. Apparently Deo has gotten his life together, has a part-time job, and is taking summer classes to finish his high school diploma. However, he still has to contend with prejudice, not least in his own family. After all, he has a criminal record, and the fact that he is black and lives in the wrong part of town doesn't help his case either. Yet Deo tries with almost stoic imperturbability to do everything right -- small steps, not wanting everything right away. That's what his probation officer advised him to do. That's why Deo has a bad feeling when his best buddy X-Ray offers him a foolproof deal. Good-natured as he is, he agrees -- and can only watch helplessly as he does.