LGBTQ

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

Now a major motion picture: Love, Simon, starring Nick Robinson and Katherine Langford!

William C. Morris Award Winner: Best Young Adult Debut of the Year * National Book Award Longlist

Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.

Incredibly funny and poignant, this twenty-first-century coming-of-age, coming out story—wrapped in a geek romance—is a knockout of a debut novel by Becky Albertalli.

Plus don’t miss Yes No Maybe So, Becky Albertalli’s and Aisha Saeed’s heartwarming and hilarious new novel, coming in 2020!

Slip

All 17-year-old Xavier can think about is graduating high school and moving to a place where no one will look twice at him. Everyone at school thinks he’s gay, but he’ll take the rumors over everyone knowing his truth. For 17-year-old, Natasha, life’s pretty good. She’s popular, has two best friends, and is dating the captain of the football team, the object of Xavier’s crush.

After witnessing a traumatic event at a Halloween bash, Xavier and Natasha experience a night which forces them to view the world through each other’s eyes. Soon Natasha is faced with the grim realization that her identity dictates how the people in her life treat her. Meanwhile, it’s a concept which Xavier knows painfully well. As they struggle to accept certain truths of their own realities, they can tell no one what’s happening to them. No one would believe them anyway, because they barely believe it themselves.

The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives

One teenager in a skirt.
One teenager with a lighter.
One moment that changes both of their lives forever.

If it weren’t for the 57 bus, Sasha and Richard never would have met. Both were high school students from Oakland, California, one of the most diverse cities in the country, but they inhabited different worlds. Sasha, a white teen, lived in the middle-class foothills and attended a small private school. Richard, a black teen, lived in the crime-plagued flatlands and attended a large public one. Each day, their paths overlapped for a mere eight minutes. But one afternoon on the bus ride home from school, a single reckless act left Sasha severely burned, and Richard charged with two hate crimes and facing life imprisonment. The case garnered international attention, thrusting both teenagers into the spotlight.

We Are Okay

ou go through life thinking there’s so much you need. . . . Until you leave with only your phone, your wallet, and a picture of your mother.

Marin hasn’t spoken to anyone from her old life since the day she left everything behind. No one knows the truth about those final weeks. Not even her best friend Mabel. But even thousands of miles away from the California coast, at college in New York, Marin still feels the pull of the life and tragedy she’s tried to outrun. Now, months later, alone in an emptied dorm for winter break, Marin waits. Mabel is coming to visit and Marin will be forced to face everything that’s been left unsaid and finally confront the loneliness that has made a home in her heart.

An intimate whisper that packs an indelible punch, We Are Okay is Nina LaCour at her finest. This gorgeously crafted and achingly honest portrayal of grief will leave you urgent to reach across any distance to reconnect with the people you love.