Twelve-year-old Trevor McKinney, who lives in a small California town, accepts the challenge that his teacher gives his class, a chance to earn extra credit by coming up with a plan to change the world for the better - and to put that plan into action.
The idea that Trevor comes up with is so simple and so naive that when others learn of it they are dismissive. Even Trevor himself begins to doubt when his pay-it-forward plan seems to founder on a combination of bad luck and the worst of human nature.
What is his idea? Trevor chooses three people for whom he will do a favour, and then when those people thank him and ask how they might pay him back, he will tell them that instead of paying him back, they should each pay it forward by choosing three people for whom they can do favours, and in turn telling those people to pay it forward. It's nothing less than a human chain letter of kindness and good will.
Does his plan work? No. And yes. It works wonderfully, but only after it has seemed to Trevor that maybe all his efforts have been for naught. The three people he chooses to help disappoint his plan in various ways, and for their own reasons. Failure seems inevitable, and Trevor is resigned. What he doesn't realise, however, is that there really is a good side to human nature, and that the tiny seed of kindness and caring he planted has taken root. In neighbourhoods in other California towns, and as far away as Los Angeles, there are others following the rules of paying it forward. Soon fame comes knocking, bringing with it excitement and an unforeseen tragedy.
This novel is a work of charm, wit and remarkable inspiration, a story of hope for today and for many tomorrows to come.
