Dexter Foreman is twelve...going on eighty. He has lived at The Pines Retirement Village with his grandmother since he was six years old, and as a result, he gets along better with senior citizens than kids his own age. He's homeschooled by the residents up until the day the county’s truancy officer shows up and announces that Dex has to go to the local middle school.

At school, Dex sticks out like a sore thumb. He dresses like a grandpa (and can be just as cranky). His taste in movies and music is decades out of date. Only a few students—like Gianna Greco, a reporter at the school’s newspaper—find him intriguing.For most, he is a weirdo...or a target.

Raised among a generation of Mr. Fix-Its, Dex can repair seemingly anything with his trusty Swiss Army Knife—which comes in handy since the old school building seems to be falling apart. It also ends up putting Dexter in a situation that could either make or break his school career.

Dexter would do anything to return to his old life at The Pines. But when his wish finally seems to be coming true, his old and new worlds collide in a way that surprises everyone—and Dexter most of all.