With searing honesty, Neal Thompson traces his sons’ progression through the escalating stages of skateboarding, from the innocent days of splurging on skate shoes and boards to skipping classes and defying teachers, to run-ins with security guards and cops, to graffiti, drinking, smoking, and beyond. As the story veers from skate parks to the streets, from funny to treacherous and back, Thompson must confront his complicity and fallibility. He also reflects on his upbringing in rural New Jersey, and his own adventures with skateboards, drugs, danger, and defiance.

A story of thrill-seeking teens, of hope and love, freedom and failure, Kickflip Boys reveals a sport and a community that have become a refuge for boys who resist mainstream expectations as they seek their own path. Ultimately, it’s a deeply moving survival story of a loving modern American family, of acceptance, forgiveness, and letting go.