Long Division

Long Division includes two distinct but tightly interwovenstories--one called "All Things Considered," the other "LongDivision." In the first, it's March 2012: 14-year-old Citoyen"City" Coldson and his nemesis, LaVander Peeler, become the firstblack male duo to win the state of Mississippi's ?Can You Use ThisWord in a Sentence? contest finals. Both boys are asked torepresent Mississippi at the televised national competition. (Hoursbefore the contest begins, City is given a book without an authorcalled "Long Division.") Turmoil and misunderstanding ensue, asCity and LaVander learn they have reason to doubt the merit oftheir presence at the contest. ?They want us to win,? City says toLaVander moments before the contest starts. After being assigned,and then misusing, the word ?niggardly? in the first round of thecontest, City has a remarkable on-stage meltdown in front of anational television audience. LaVander, on the other hand, thoughincredibly shaken, advances to the finals and has the chance to winthe contest. The day after the contest, City is sent to spend the weekendwith his grandmother in the small coastal community of Melahatchie,which is also the site of the mysterious disappearance of girlnamed Baize Shephard. Baize Shephard also happens to be one of themain characters in the book "Long Division," which City has beendipping into throughout the story. While in Melahatchie, City'stroubled Uncle Relle reveals that City has become an overnightYouTube celebrity thanks to his on-stage meltdown, and that he isbeing sought to appear on a new television show called "Youtube?s Black Reality All Stars." City is alternately celebrated andridiculed by the white and black residents of Melahatchie as aresult of his performance at the contest, even as he delves deeperinto "Long Division" and its story of the missing Baize Shephard. When the neighborhood is convinced that a white man nicknamedPot-Belly has assaulted Baize and done away with her body, theybeat the man to de