The Raider

Sixth-grader Micah Harrington Hess is fed up. The kids in middle school stare straight through him. Despite his natural friendliness and elementary-school successes hes invisible now. When he discovers that his ancestor Micah Harrington fought and raided with Jessups Loyal Rangers during the U.S. Revolution Micah decides to imitate his risk-taking ancestor--to raid the unjust and help the helpless. Micah is ill-informed about the Revolution but hes positive no one ignores raiders. His single mom says God sees you and likes what he sees. However Micah wants the kids at school to see him and like what they see too.Micah and his friends Mazi and Luke start a business making key-racks from scratch. Their business brings them spending money and community respect except from Micahs younger sister Jodie. Throughout the school year Micah (sometimes with others help) perpetrates twelve raids: -- against Micahs next-door-neighbor Mr. Pritchert for throwing tennis balls at dogs;-- against Jodie for swiping Micahs best skill woodworking;-- against Luke for lying;-- against the grocery-store deli for selling moldy pizzas;-- against five classmates for bullying a Bulgarian student;-- against Mr. Pritchert again this time based on mathematical probability;-- against Micahs Lukes and Mazis neighborhoods for abusing the garbage collectors by putting out putrid trash;-- against a car thief for theft and for kidnapping the driver;-- against Micahs mom for taking fewer photos of toddler brother Kevin than of Micah or Jodie;-- against a suspicious backpack for possibly hiding a bomb;-- against Micahs mom and siblings just for fun;-- against Micahs remote dad for loving Jodie more.Some of Micahs raids bring triumph others turmoil and one brings near-tragedy. Micah starts to think invisibility was better.When he eventually learns the truth about what his ancestor did during the Revolution Micah is disappointed and ashamed but his friends are not. In the end Micah quits raiding partly because kids stop ignoring him but mostly because he realizes God sees him and likes what he sees.