Optimists Die First


Susin Nielsen - 2017
    Sixteen-year-old Petula De Wilde is anything but wild. A family tragedy has made her shut herself off from the world. Once a crafting fiend with a happy life, Petula now sees danger in everything, from airplanes to ground beef. The worst part of her week is her comically lame mandatory art therapy class. She has nothing in common with this small band of teenage misfits, except that they all carry their own burden of guilt.When Jacob joins their ranks, he seems so normal and confident. Petula wants nothing to do with him, or his prosthetic arm. But when they’re forced to collaborate on a unique school project, she slowly opens up, and he inspires her to face her fears.Until a hidden truth threatens to derail everything.

Mackenzie's Beat


Maggie Brown - 2015
    Rachel Anderson wants no help from a war-shocked journalist—what police detective ever needs an amateur tagging along, especially a damnably attractive one? But Brisbane is under siege and a serial killer’s body count is rising. With the clock ticking, no lead is too slim. Rachel needs Mac’s help, and there’s no chance Mac won’t take. Neither of them means for it to go as far as it does…

L-DK, Vol. 01


Ayu Watanabe - 2009
    Although she initially hates him for this, when Shuusei moves in next door to Aoi, who lives alone, she starts thinking that he might not be such a bad guy after all...

Bad Boy


Elliot Wake - 2016
    Plus the scars on his chest and a prescription for testosterone. Because Ren is transgender: assigned female at birth, living now as male. He films his transition and shares it bravely with the world; his fans love his honesty and positivity.But Ren has been living a double life.Off-camera, he’s Cane, the muscle-bound enforcer for social justice vigilante group Black Iris. As Cane, he lets his dark side loose. Hurts those who prey on the disempowered. Indulges in the ugly side of masculinity. And his new partner, Tamsin Baylor, is a girl as rough and relentless as him. Together, they terrorize the trolls into silence.But when a routine Black Iris job goes south, Ren is put in the crosshairs. Someone is out to ruin his life. He’s a bad boy, they say, guilty of what he punishes others for.Just like every other guy: at heart, he’s a monster, too.Now Ren’s got everything to prove. He has to clear his name, and show the world he’s a good man. But that requires facing demons he’s locked away for years. And it might mean discovering he’s not such a good guy after all.

The [Un]Popular Vote


Jasper Sanchez - 2021
    It’s a cheap stunt, but Mark Adams knows it’s optics that can win or ruin an election.Everything Mark learned about politics, he learned from his father, the congressman who still pretends he has a daughter and not a son. To protect his father’s image, Mark promises to keep his past hidden and pretend to be the cis guy everyone assumes he is. But when he sees a manipulatively charming candidate for student body president inflame dangerous rhetoric, Mark decides to risk the low profile he assured his father and insert himself as a political challenger.One big problem? No one really knows Mark. He didn’t grow up in this town, and he has few friends; plus, the ones he does have aren’t exactly with the in-crowd. Still, thanks to countless seasons of Scandal and The West Wing, these nerds know where to start: from campaign stops to voter polling to a fashion makeover. Soon Mark feels emboldened to get in front of and engage with voters—and even start a new romance. But with an investigative journalist digging into his past, a father trying to silence him, and a bully front-runner who stands in his way, Mark will have to decide which matters most: perception or truth, when both are just as dangerous.

Becoming Nicole: The Transformation of an American Family


Amy Ellis Nutt - 2015
    But it wasn’t long before they noticed a marked difference between Jonas and his brother, Wyatt. Jonas preferred sports and trucks and many of the things little boys were “supposed” to like; but Wyatt liked princess dolls and dress-up and playing Little Mermaid. By the time the twins were toddlers, confusion over Wyatt’s insistence that he was female began to tear the family apart. In the years that followed, the Maineses came to question their long-held views on gender and identity, to accept and embrace Wyatt’s transition to Nicole, and to undergo an emotionally wrenching transformation of their own that would change all their lives forever.Becoming Nicole chronicles a journey that could have destroyed a family but instead brought it closer together. It’s the story of a mother whose instincts told her that her child needed love and acceptance, not ostracism and disapproval; of a Republican, Air Force veteran father who overcame his deepest fears to become a vocal advocate for trans rights; of a loving brother who bravely stuck up for his twin sister; and of a town forced to confront its prejudices, a school compelled to rewrite its rules, and a courageous community of transgender activists determined to make their voices heard. Ultimately, Becoming Nicole is the story of an extraordinary girl who fought for the right to be herself.Granted wide-ranging access to personal diaries, home videos, clinical journals, legal documents, medical records, and the Maineses themselves, Amy Ellis Nutt spent almost four years reporting this immersive account of an American family confronting an issue that is at the center of today’s cultural debate. Becoming Nicole will resonate with anyone who’s ever raised a child, felt at odds with society’s conventions and norms, or had to embrace life when it plays out unexpectedly. It’s a story of standing up for your beliefs and yourself—and it will inspire all of us to do the same.

Felix Ever After


Kacen Callender - 2020
    He desperately wants to know what it’s like and why it seems so easy for everyone but him to find someone. What’s worse is that, even though he is proud of his identity, Felix also secretly fears that he’s one marginalization too many—Black, queer, and transgender—to ever get his own happily-ever-after.When an anonymous student begins sending him transphobic messages—after publicly posting Felix’s deadname alongside images of him before he transitioned—Felix comes up with a plan for revenge. What he didn’t count on: his catfish scenario landing him in a quasi–love triangle....But as he navigates his complicated feelings, Felix begins a journey of questioning and self-discovery that helps redefine his most important relationship: how he feels about himself.Felix Ever After is an honest and layered story about identity, falling in love, and recognizing the love you deserve.

Copy. Cure.: A Nanotechnology Adventure


Leslie Moore - 2018
    Sarah Holloway, share her Nanotechnology breakthroughs to help him lose two hundred pounds. Sarah refuses him saying that it's too dangerous! Her Nanites are designed to improve women's health and are not for men. Rodney arranges a theft from her lab and procures a dose for himself. He swallows the Nanites and as he loses weight, he also begins to radically change. After the Nanites make Rodney a perfect specimen, he faces a new set of challenges AS A WOMAN!

Songs About a Girl


Chris Russell - 2016
    She's happiest out of the spotlight, behind her camera, unseen and unnoticed. But when she's asked to take backstage photos for hot new boy band Fire&Lights, she can't pass up the chance. Catapulted into a world of paparazzi and backstage bickering, Charlie soon becomes caught between gorgeous but damaged frontman, Gabriel West, and his boy-next-door bandmate Olly Samson. Then, as the boys' rivalry threatens to tear the band apart, Charlie stumbles upon a mind-blowing secret, hidden in the lyrics of their songs...

The Moment We Fell (Mystic Shores series Book 1)


Kelli Warner - 2019
     Paige Bryant’s dreams of becoming a professional ballet dancer died along with her mother. Drowning in grief and plagued by guilt, Paige is blindsided by a provision in her mother’s will that sends her to live with the father she never knew. Forced to start over in a new town, and at a new school where she's now the principal's daughter, Paige is convinced that her life can’t possibly get more complicated—until fate throws her into the path of the only boy her guardian tells her is off-limits. Despite two years on the straight and narrow, Cade Matthews can’t escape his time as a juvenile delinquent. With his dad behind bars, Cade’s feelings of anger and betrayal are as relentless as the rumors he’s trying to outrun. The only person not listening to the gossip is the new girl with her own set of troubles, including a father who will never give Cade a fair shake. As Paige tries to adjust to her new life and an uncertain future, a set of unopened journals reveals a dark family secret. When tensions rise to a boiling point, can Paige and Cade make peace with the past before it destroys them?

Tales of the Madman Underground


John Barnes - 2009
    For years, Karl's been part of what he calls "the Madman Underground" - a group of kids forced (for no apparent reason) to attend group therapy during school hours. Karl has decided that senior year is going to be different. He is going to get out of the Madman Underground for good. He is going to act - and be - Normal. But Normal, of course, is relative. Karl has five after-school jobs, one dead father, one seriously unhinged drunk mother . . . and a huge attitude. Welcome to a gritty, uncensored rollercoaster ride, narrated by the singular Karl Shoemaker.

Lies We Tell Ourselves


Robin Talley - 2014
    An honors student at her old school, she is put into remedial classes, spit on and tormented daily.Linda Hairston is the daughter of one of the town's most vocal opponents of school integration. She has been taught all her life that the races should be kept separate but equal.Forced to work together on a school project, Sarah and Linda must confront harsh truths about race, power and how they really feel about one another.Boldly realistic and emotionally compelling, Lies We Tell Ourselves is a brave and stunning novel about finding truth amid the lies, and finding your voice even when others are determined to silence it.

Brenna Blixen Novels Bundle: Double Clutch, Junk Miles, Slow Twitch


Liz Reinhardt - 2012
    Brenna explores the ups and downs of young love with loyal and determined Jake Kelly and lovable badass Saxon Maclean at her side.This bundle includes the following:Double ClutchWhat happens when you fall for the perfect guy...twice...in one day?Brenna Blixen spent her freshman year homeschooling in Denmark; now that she's back in the States, she's determined to make her sophomore year unforgettable. And by unforgettable, she imagined awesome classes, fun friendships, and maybe a little romance. What she got was a whole lot of romance, and all at once. The same day that dark, brooding Saxon Maclean charmed her with his killer good looks and whip-smart wit, Jake Kelly stole her breath away with his heart-wrenching smile and intelligent, thoughtful focus.But Saxon is a proud player who makes it clear that he doesn't know why he can't get Brenna off of his mind and out of his system, and Jake's sweet and humble attitude hides a secret past life that might be darker and more complex than Brenna is willing to deal with. Complicating the matter is the fact that Saxon and Jake were once best friends and are now arch-enemies...and the more Brenna finds out about their connection to each other, the more intrigued and worried she becomes.Between keeping the peace with her lovingly over-protective parents, designing t-shirts for her high school's rising punk band, keeping up her grades in classes split between academic and technical high school, and running the track like a maniac, Brenna has enough to worry about without juggling two guys who make her heart thud and drive her crazy all at once. She has to make a choice, but how is she supposed to do that when giving her heart to one of them might mean breaking the other's?Junk MilesKissing someone other than your boyfriend is cheating. But what about thinking about kissing someone other than your boyfriend? What about thinking about it a lot?Brenna Blixen has the perfect boyfriend. He's sweet, sexy, loyal, and sure that Brenna is the best thing that's ever happened to him. But being the perfect girlfriend isn't as easy as Brenna thought it would be, and the pressure that comes with trying to be Jake's everything is beginning to weigh on her. When her mother surprises her with a trip to Paris over winter break, she's torn. She anticipated spending her vacation snuggling with Jake Kelly, ice-skating, drinking cocoa, and relaxing...but what girl in her right mind would turn down a trip to Paris?Things only get more confusing when she winds up unexpectedly and unavoidably thrown into Saxon Maclean's arms in the City of Lights. Far away from the comfort and stability she finds at Jake's side, Brenna faces down the feelings that have been swirling through her since the day she laid eyes on Saxon. Is it fair for her to call herself Jake's girlfriend when she has so many unresolved feelings about someone else?Brenna is determined to figure it all out, even if it means making some of the hardest decisions of her entire life. She also learns that every single thing she does has rippling repercussions, some that fill her with total regret. By the time she figures out what her heart truly wants, she realizes that she may not be able to have it after all.Slow TwitchSummer scatters three friends, ties them back together, and makes them question who they have been and who they want to be in the future.Brenna expected to soak up the knowledge of great Irish writers at her summer workshop in Dublin.

Before We Grow Old: The love story that everyone will be talking about in 2022


Clare Swatman - 2022
    

The Inexplicable Survival of a Happily Fallible Child


Gary C. Mele, Jr. - 2018
    She is cunning and resilient, but hopelessly devoted to the same destructive family members responsible for the failure of her marriage. Husbandless and pregnant with her third child, Gary's mom manages to take her small stopgap family from living in a car in a beach parking lot to a boarding house where she meets the man who will be the father of her next two children. Evictions and cut utilities force move after move from neighboring towns to different states. As the growing family relocates, neglect and abuse from relatives and family friends shadow the children's lives. The chaotic existence, including the presence of an uncle and step-father in and out of prison and an alcoholic uncle who will not leave, awaken Gary to the realization that his family is not like other families. He begins to question his mother's decisions and disappointment transitions to anger, but a bond remains between Gary and his mom. Even during the worst times, she surprises with a fiercely protective love like when Gary is forced to come out as gay at the age of fourteen. In spite of the unhinged way of living, the family is close. Gary and his younger brothers and sisters have no real friends but each other, and, in spite of her faults, they know their mother loves them deeply. Nothing prepares them for the moment she is taken away.