Readers of Sarah Dessen and Kasie West will likely enjoy This Might Get Awkward by Kara McDowell. Set in Page, Arizona, McDowell’s novel tells the story of Gemma Wells, who finds social situations awkward and awful and who—of her own admission—doesn’t know how to have fun. Despite her challenges to conquer her social anxiety disorder (SAD), Gemma can’t just “suck it up.” So, when her favorite beach is overtaken by a teen party at the end of the school year, her fantasies kick into high gear. Beau Booker, captain of the swim team and the most popular person at Page High, is in attendance. JustRead More →

Adi Rule writes an intriguing story about Viveca North in Why Would I Lie? Rule’s protagonist has a plan—a fool-proof, clockwork plan for success. It involves being intense and having an extreme work ethic to achieve “perfect grades, perfect extracurriculars, perfect recommendations. Then a perfect launch, an upward trajectory into the life that has always felt out of reach” (1-2). Viveca dreams of attending Everett College and majoring in psychology. Her ticket to that dream is earning status as valedictorian and winning the Pinniped County Futurists Scholarship Contest. Currently a student at Elton Prep, a swanky private school, Viveca can’t wait to get out ofRead More →

Living in Brazil, Felipe cannot think about other people’s suffering because he has too many issues of his own, so being gay is a small detail in a truckload of crises. He is a shy, anxious, socially-challenged young man with low self-esteem, conditions which largely center around his obesity.  Given these challenges and his experiences with bullies, jumping to the worst-case scenario is Felipe’s specialty. Instead of having to endure this life in which he lost out in the talent lottery and his dad gave him the fat gene before abandoning him, Felipe wishes he were a superhero, one who could create force fields soRead More →