Jonathan Kohl, the gifted son of Greta Kohl, had no idea how much his dreams would change when his mother moved them to Arizona. Never could he have expected that it would be a 12-year-old neighbor who would destroy his goal of becoming a star quarterback and spin him into the adult prison system. Set in northwestern Arizona, Red Ball carries the reader through the washes and ravines of the high desert as Johnny's secrets are revealed. A perfect storm is forming when Demaris and her older sister move into the area to stay with their aunt and the unruly 12-year-old stumbles onto one of Johnny's secrets. Jealous of her older sister's friendship with Johnny, Demaris accuses him of the unthinkable. Johnny's losses are too great to count as he is forced to come of age alone in an adult prison. He struggles to regain a sense of purpose and direction for years, but even after his release, clouds of uncertainty persist over his head. With nowhere to go, Johnny heads to Trail's End, a trailer park full of its own secrets and home to Cody Simms. But just when Johnny seems to have pulled his life back together, his misfortune returns.