Tom Xia emigrated from mainland China to California at age eight. A series of Chinese toy recalls forces Xia's neighbors, the Joneses, to have their son tested for lead poisoning. With China's assent to world superpower status heating up American fears, Xia challenges the Joneses to make it through the Christmas season without any Chinese products, beginning a journey to find American identity amongst all the American media hype, Chinese nationalist propaganda and cultural misunderstandings.