Author: Ellen Zielinski Whitfield

There are a slew of excellent movies that take place at schools to help keep the back-to-school blues away, and we put together a list of books to read based on your favorite flick!

IF YOU LIKE Drumline TRY Blood At the Root by Ladarrion Williams

Ten years ago, Malik’s life changed forever the night his mother mysteriously vanished and he discovered he had uncontrollable powers. Since then, he has kept his abilities hidden, looking out for himself and his younger foster brother, Taye. Now, at 17, Malik is finally ready to start a new life for both of them, far from the trauma of his past. However, a daring act to rescue Taye reveals an unexpected connection with his long-lost grandmother: a legendary conjurer with ties to a hidden magical university that Malik’s mother attended. At Caiman University, Malik’s eyes are opened to a future he never could have envisioned for himself — one that includes the reappearance of his first love, Alexis. His search for answers about his heritage, his powers, and what really happened to his mother exposes the cracks in their magical community as it faces a reawakened evil dating back to the Haitian Revolution. Together with Alexis, Malik discovers a lot beneath the surface at Caiman: feuding covens and magical politics, forbidden knowledge and buried mysteries.

IF YOU LIKE The Perks of Being A Wallflower, TRY Looking For Alaska by John Green

Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words — and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet François Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young, who will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.

IF YOU LIKE The Breakfast Club, TRY The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer

Six teenagers at a summer camp for the arts become inseparable, and while decades later the bond remains powerful, so much else has changed. Jules Jacobson, an aspiring comic actress, eventually resigns herself to a more practical occupation and lifestyle. Jonah stops playing the guitar and becomes an engineer. But Ethan and Ash, Jules’s now-married best friends, become shockingly successful — true to their initial artistic dreams, with the wealth and access that allow those dreams to keep expanding. The friendships endure and even prosper, but also underscore the differences in their fates.

IF YOU LIKE Booksmart, TRY Leah On the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli

Leah is an anomaly in her friend group: She’s the only child of a young, single mom, and her life is decidedly less privileged. She loves to draw but is too self-conscious to show it. And even though her mom knows she’s bisexual, she hasn’t mustered the courage to tell her friends. So Leah really doesn’t know what to do when her rock-solid friend group starts to fracture in unexpected ways. With prom and college on the horizon, tensions are running high.

IF YOU LIKE Clueless, TRY Kamila Knows Best by Farah Heron

Kamila’s life is filled with her elaborate Bollywood movie parties, a dog with more Instagram followers than most reality stars, a job she loves, and an endless array of friends who clearly need her help finding love. Kamila is so busy with her friends’ love lives, she’s hardly given any thought to her own. Fortunately, Kamila has Rohan, a longtime friend of the family. Only lately, Kamila’s “harmless flirting” with Rohan is making her insides do a little bhangra dance. But Kamila isn’t letting herself get distracted — until her secret nemesis returns to town with an eye for Rohan. 

IF YOU LIKE Remember the Titans, TRY A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi

It’s 2002, a year after 9/11. It’s an extremely turbulent time politically, but especially so for someone like Shirin, a 16-year-old Muslim girl who’s tired of being stereotyped. Shirin is tired of the rude stares, the degrading comments — even the physical violence — she endures. So she’s built up protective walls. But then she meets Ocean James. He’s the first person in forever who really seems to want to get to know Shirin.They seem to come from two irreconcilable worlds — and Shirin has had her guard up for so long that she’s not sure she’ll ever be able to let it down.

IF YOU LIKE Bring It On, TRY We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry

In the town of Danvers, Massachusetts, home of the original 1692 witch trials, the 1989 Danvers Falcons will do anything to make it to the state finals — even if it means tapping into some devilishly dark powers. Helmed by good-girl captain Abby Putnam and her co-captain Jen Fiorenza, the Falcons flaunt society’s stale notions of femininity and storm their way through an unforgettable season.

IF YOU LIKE 10 Things I Hate About You, TRY Better Hate Than Never by Chloe Liese

Katerina Wilmot and Christopher Petruchio shared backyards as kids, but as adults they won’t even share the same hemisphere, until Kate makes a rare visit home. When a drunken Kate confesses she’s only been hostile because she thought he hated her, Christopher vows to make peace.  As desire gives way to deeper feelings, Kate and Christopher must decide if it’s truly better to hate than to never risk their hearts.

IF YOU LIKE Dead Poets Society, TRY We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

On the day Oliver Marks is released, he’s greeted by the man who put him in prison. Detective Colborne is retiring, but he wants to know what really happened a decade ago. As young actors studying Shakespeare at an elite arts college, Oliver and his friends play the same roles onstage and off: hero, villain, tyrant, temptress, ingénue, extra. But when the secondary characters usurp the stars, the plays spill dangerously over into life, and one of them is found dead. 

 

Listen, I don’t watch Emily In Paris (it’s back Aug. 15), but I might be convinced to try it soon, given how many of y’all seem to love it. There’s just something about being whisked away from your problems through travel… only to find a new set of problems abroad. If this is your vibe, you might also enjoy one of these books featuring expats getting in all sorts of trouble in other countries.

THE CLASSICS

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller (Italy)

Yossarian is a hero who is furious because thousands of people he has never met are trying to kill him. But his real problem is not the enemy — it is his own army, which keeps increasing the number of missions the men must fly to complete their service. Yet if Yossarian makes any attempt to excuse himself from the perilous missions he’s assigned, he’ll be in violation of Catch-22, a hilariously sinister bureaucratic rule: a man is considered insane if he willingly continues to fly dangerous combat missions, but if he makes a formal request to be removed from duty, he is proven sane and therefore ineligible to be relieved.

Democracy by Joan Didion (Indonesia and Vietnam)

A bitingly funny, cumulatively devastating post-mortem of our national mores and institutions set against the historical backdrop of the final withdrawal from Vietnam. A U.S. Senator, his wife, senatorial groupies and international arms dealing intersect with one another in this blistering indictment of American amnesia.

Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin (Paris)

David is a young American expatriate who has just proposed marriage to his girlfriend, Hella. While she is away on a trip, David meets a bartender named Giovanni to whom he is drawn in spite of himself. Soon the two are spending the night in Giovanni’s curtainless room, which he keeps dark to protect their privacy. But Hella’s return to Paris brings the affair to a crisis, one that rapidly spirals into tragedy.

NONFICTION

A Year in Provence by Peter Mayle (southern France)

A couple buys a 200-year-old home in southern France and experiences the culture shock and growing pains of a new life outside England. Mayle documents the first year of their life in Provence, including the amazing cuisine, strange local customs, onslaught of wanted and unwanted house guests, and the peace he and his wife manage to find despite their struggle to learn the language and establish themselves as permanent residents. 

A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway (Paris)

A correspondent for the “Toronto Star, ” Hemingway arrived in Paris in 1921, three years after the trauma of the Great War and at the beginning of the transformation of Europe’s cultural landscape: Braque and Picasso were experimenting with cubist form; James Joyce, long living in self-imposed exile from his native Dublin, had just completed “Ulysses; ” Gertrude Stein held court at 27 Rue de Fleurus, and deemed young Ernest a member of “une gneration perdue; ” and T.S. Eliot was a bank clerk in London. 

The Year of Living Danishly: Uncovering the Secrets of the World’s Happiest Country by Helen Russell (Denmark)

Keen to know their secrets, Helen gave herself a year to uncover the formula for Danish happiness. From childcare, education, food and interior design to SAD and taxes, this is a funny, poignant journey, showing us what the Danes get right, what they get wrong, and how we might all live a little more Danishly ourselves.

Beyond the Shores: A History of African Americans Abroad by Tamara J. Walker

Drawing on years of research, Walker takes readers from well-known capital cities to more unusual destinations like Yangiyul, Uzbekistan, and Kabondo, Kenya. She follows Florence Mills, the would-be Josephine Baker of her day, in Paris, and Richard Wright, the author turned actor and filmmaker, in Buenos Aires. Throughout “Beyond the Shores,” she relays tender stories of adventurous travelers, including a group of gifted Black crop scientists in the 1930s, a housewife searching for purpose in the 1950s, and a Peace Corps volunteer discovering his identity in the 1970s. Tying these tales together is Walker’s personal account of her family’s, and her own, experiences abroad—in France, Brazil, Argentina, Austria, and beyond.

YOUNG ADULT

Love From A to Z by S.K. Ali (Qatar)

But Zayneb, the only Muslim in class, isn’t bad. She’s angry. When she gets suspended for confronting her teacher, and he begins investigating her activist friends, Zayneb heads to her aunt’s house in Doha, Qatar. Fueled by the guilt of getting her friends in trouble, she resolves to try out a “nicer” version of herself. Then her path crosses with Adam’s. Since he got diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, Adam’s stopped going to classes. He’s intent on keeping the memory of his mom alive for his little sister, and his diagnosis a secret from his grieving father. Alone, Adam and Zayneb are playing roles for others, keeping their real thoughts locked away in their journals. 

A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow by Laura Taylor Namey (England)

A summer in England was never part of Lila’s plan. She was supposed to take over her abuela’s role as head baker at their panadería, move in with her best friend after graduation, and live happily ever after with her boyfriend. But then everything fell apart. So her parents make a new plan: spend three months with family friends in Winchester, England, to relax and reset. Lila is unhappily stuck in a small town lacking Miami flavor (both in food and otherwise), until she meets a tea shop clerk with troubles of his own. Orion is determined to help Lila out of her funk, and appoints himself as her personal tour guide. Soon a new future is beginning to form in Lila’s mind.

Tokyo Ever After by Emiko Jean (Tokyo)

Izumi Tanaka has never really felt like she fit in — it isn’t easy being Japanese American in her small, mostly white, California town. It’s always been Izumi — or Izzy, because “It’s easier” — and her mom against the world. But then Izumi discovers her father is the Crown Prince of Japan and travels to discover the country she always dreamed of. There are conniving cousins, a hungry press, a scowling but handsome bodyguard, and thousands of years of tradition and customs to learn practically overnight.

HISTORICAL FICTION

The Fountains of Silence by Ruta Sepetys (Madrid)

Under a fascist dictatorship, Spain is hiding a dark secret. Meanwhile, tourists and foreign businessmen flood into Spain under the welcoming promise of sunshine and wine. Among them is eighteen-year-old Daniel Matheson, the son of an oil tycoon, who arrives in Madrid with his parents hoping to connect with the country of his mother’s birth through the lens of his camera. Photography — and fate — introduce him to Ana, whose family’s interweaving obstacles reveal the lingering grasp of the Spanish Civil War — as well as chilling definitions of fortune and fear. 

American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson (West Africa)

Marie Mitchell is an intelligence officer with the FBI during the Cold War. She’s brilliant, but she’s also a young black woman working in an old boys’ club. So when she’s given the opportunity to join a task force aimed at undermining the revolutionary president of Burkina Faso, she says yes. Yes, even though she secretly admires the work he is doing for his country. Marie will observe Sankara, seduce him, and ultimately have a hand in the coup that will bring him down. But doing so will change everything she believes about what it means to be a spy, a lover, a sister, and a good American.

Caramelo by Sandra Cisneros (Mexico City)

Every year, Ceyala “Lala” Reyes’ family — aunts, uncles, mothers, fathers, and Lala’s six older brothers — packs up three cars and drives from Chicago to the Little Grandfather and Awful Grandmother’s house for the summer. Struggling to find a voice above the boom of her brothers and to understand her place on this side of the border and that, Lala is a shrewd observer of family life. But when she starts telling the Awful Grandmother’s life story, seeking clues to how she got to be so awful, grandmother accuses Lala of exaggerating. Soon, a multigenerational family narrative turns into a whirlwind exploration of storytelling, lies, and life. 

CONTEMPORARY

The Vacationers by Emma Straub (Mallorca)

For the Posts, a two-week trip to the island of Mallorca with their extended family and friends is a celebration: Franny and Jim are observing their thirty-fifth wedding anniversary, and their daughter, Sylvia, has graduated from high school. The sunlit island also promises an escape from the tensions simmering at home in Manhattan. But all does not go according to plan: over the course of the vacation, secrets come to light, old and new humiliations are experienced, childhood rivalries resurface, and ancient wounds are exacerbated.

What Belongs to You by Garth Greenwell (Bulgaria)

On a warm autumn day, an American teacher enters a public bathroom beneath Sofia’s National Palace of Culture. There he meets Mitko, a charismatic young hustler, and pays him for sex. He returns again, drawn by hunger and loneliness and risk, and finds himself ensnared in a relationship in which lust leads to mutual predation, and tenderness can transform into violence. As he struggles to reconcile his longing with the anguish it creates, he’s forced to grapple with his own fraught history, the world of his southern childhood where to be queer was to be a pariah. n narrative, his private history of illness, exploitation, and want.

The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid (Pakistan)

At a café in Lahore, a Pakistani man converses with an uneasy American stranger. He begins to tell the story of a man named Changez, who is living an immigrant’s dream of America. At the top of his class at Princeton, he is snapped up by an elite valuation firm. His budding romance with elegant, beautiful Erica promises entry into elite Manhattan society. But in the wake of September 11, Changez finds his position in his adopted city suddenly overturned, and his relationship with Erica shifting. And Changez’s own identity is in seismic shift as well, unearthing allegiances more fundamental than money, power, and maybe even love.

THRILLERS

The Searcher by Tana French (Ireland)

Cal Hooper thought a fixer-upper in a bucolic Irish village would be the perfect escape. After twenty-five years in the Chicago police force and a bruising divorce, he just wants to build a new life in a pretty spot with a good pub where nothing much happens. But when a local kid whose brother has gone missing arm-twists him into investigating, Cal uncovers layers of darkness beneath his picturesque retreat, and starts to realize that even small towns shelter dangerous secrets.

Murder in G Major by Alexia Gordon (Ireland)

With few other options, African-American classical musician Gethsemane Brown accepts a less-than-ideal position turning a group of rowdy schoolboys into an award-winning orchestra. Stranded without luggage or money in the Irish countryside, she figures any job is better than none. The perk? Housesitting a lovely cliffside cottage. The catch? The ghost of the cottage’s murdered owner haunts the place. Falsely accused of killing his wife (and himself), he begs Gethsemane to clear his name so he can rest in peace. Gethsemane’s reluctant investigation provokes a dormant killer and she soon finds herself in grave danger. 

The Expats by Chris Pavone (Luxembourg)

Kate Moore’s days are filled with playdates and coffee mornings, her weekends spent in Paris and skiing in the Alps. But Kate is also guarding a secret that’s become so unbearable that it begins to unravel her newly established expat life. She suspects that another American couple are not who they claim to be; her husband is acting suspiciously; and as she travels around Europe, she finds herself terrified that her past is catching up with her. Kate finds herself buried in layers of deceit so thick they threaten her family, her marriage, and her life.

While I generally think the amount of people yelling “LET’S GO” has gotten out of hand, the Olympics is an appropriate venue. You could say I’m pretty excited to watch the best athletes in the world compete in Paris. And if you get inspired to read a book about some of the summer Olympic sporting events, check out this list.

Gymnastics: Vaulting Through Time by Nancy McCabe

Sixteen-year-old gymnast Elizabeth Arlington has a lot to worry about: an embarrassing crush on her ex-best-friend Zach, and changes in her body that affect her center of gravity and make vaulting and tumbling more terrifying than they used to be. But when she makes a discovery that throws her entire identity into question, she turns to Zach, who suggests a way for her to find the answers her mother won’t give her: a time machine they found in an abandoned house. As Elizabeth catapults through time, she encounters a mysterious abandoned child, an elite gymnast preparing for the Olympic Trials, and an enigmatic woman who seems to know more than she’s revealing. Then when a thief makes off with an identical time machine, Elizabeth races to stop the thief before the world as she knows it is destroyed.

Track and field: Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Ghost. Lu. Patina. Sunny. Four kids from wildly different backgrounds with personalities that are explosive when they clash. But they are also four kids chosen for an elite middle school track team—a team that could qualify them for the Junior Olympics if they can get their acts together. They all have a lot to lose, but they also have a lot to prove, not only to each other but to themselves.

Swimming: Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas

Bree can’t wait for her first day at her new middle school until she’s stuck with the only elective that fits her schedule, Swim 101. The thought of swimming makes Bree more than a little queasy, but, Etta, an elderly occupant of her apartment building and former swim team captain, is willing to help. With Etta’s training and a lot of hard work, Bree suddenly finds her community counting on her to turn the school’s failing team around. But that’s easier said than done.

Tennis: Drop Shot by Harlan Coben

Once, Valerie Simpson’s tennis career skyrocketed; now, the headlines belong to a player from the wrong side of the tracks. But when Valerie is shot dead in cold blood and dropped outside the stadium at the U.S. Open, sports agent Myron Bolitar investigates the killing and uncovers a connection between the two players and a six-year-old murder at an exclusive mainline club. As Myron is drawn into the case–along with a dirty U.S. senator, a jealous mother, and the mob–he finds himself caught between a killer and the truth.

Boxing: Boxer Handsome by Anna Whitwham

Boxing runs in Bobby’s blood. His Irish dad was a boxer. So was his Jewish grandfather. And Bobby knows he shouldn’t be messing in street brawls a week before his big fight with Connor ‘the Gypsy Boy’, an Irish traveler from around the way. They’re fighting over a traveler girl with Connor’s name all over her. But Bobby’s handsome, like his dad; boxer handsome.

Fencing: It’s All or Nothing, Vale by Andrea Beatriz Arango

No one knows hard work and dedication like Valentina Camacho. And Vale’s thing is fencing. She’s the top athlete at her fencing gym. Or she was . . . until the accident. After months away, Vale is finally cleared to fence again, but her body doesn’t move the way it used to. When the new number one sweeps Vale aside with her perfect form and easy smile, Vale just can’t accept that. But the harder Vale fights to catch up, the more she realizes her injury isn’t the only thing holding her back.

Equestrian: Horse by Geraldine Brooks

Kentucky, 1850. An enslaved groom named Jarret and a bay foal forge a bond of understanding that will carry the horse to record-setting victories across the South. When the nation erupts into civil war, an itinerant young artist who has made his name on paintings of the racehorse takes up arms for the Union. New York City, 1954. Martha Jackson, a gallery owner, becomes obsessed with a nineteenth-century equestrian oil painting of mysterious provenance. Washington, D.C., 2019. Jess, a Smithsonian scientist from Australia, and Theo, a Nigerian-American art historian, find themselves unexpectedly connected through their shared interest in the horse–one studying the stallion’s bones for clues to his power and endurance, the other uncovering the lost history of the unsung Black horsemen who were critical to his racing success.

Archery: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister’s place in the Games. But survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity.

Rowing: The Boys In the Boat by Daniel James Brown

It was an unlikely quest from the start. With a team composed of the sons of loggers, shipyard workers, and farmers, the University of Washington’s eight-oar crew team was never expected to defeat the elite teams of the East Coast and Great Britain, yet they did, going on to shock the world by defeating the German team rowing for Adolf Hitler. The emotional heart of the tale lies with Joe Rantz, a teenager without family or prospects, who rows not only to regain his shattered self-regard but also to find a real place for himself in the world. 

Soccer: Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez

In Argentina, Camila Hassan lives a double life. At home, she is a careful daughter, living within her mother’s narrow expectations, in her rising soccer star brother’s shadow, and under the abusive rule of her father. On the field, she is La Furia, a powerhouse of skill and talent. When her team qualifies for the South American tournament, Camila gets the chance to see just how far those talents can take her. But her parents don’t know about her passion. And the boy she once loved is back in town. But Camila doesn’t have time to be distracted by her feelings. Camila is forced to face her secrets and make her way in a world with no place for the dreams and ambitions of a girl like her.

 

We’re planning to beat the heat at theaters this summer (and on our couches), and we came up with some book recommendations based on the movies we’re planning to see.

If you’re buying tickets to Inside Out 2, try Iveliz Explains It All by Andrea Beatriz Arango

Tweens explore their emotions while dealing with unexpected issues

If you’re buying tickets to Babes, try Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe

Accidental pregnancy for young women who don’t exactly have their lives together

If you’re buying tickets to Thelma, try The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett by Annie Lyons

An older woman’s adventures leads her to find new joy in life 

If you’re buying tickets to Fly Me To the Moon, try The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal

Strong women find their place in the space race

If you’re buying tickets to A Quiet Place: Day One, try Blindness by José Saramago 

The human race’s drive to survive and a loss of senses

If you’re buying tickets to My Old Ass, try Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore

Young women learning lessons from time travel escapades

If you’re buying tickets to Furiosa, try A Big Ship at the End of the Universe by Alex White

Dangerous races in a dystopian future

If you’re buying tickets to Hit Man, try Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano

Accidental contract killer shenanigans

Chronic Disease Day is marked on July 10 to spread awareness, educate and advocate for people who live with chronic health conditions every day. And there are lots of great books that shine a light on people going about their lives while dealing with various conditions — here are just a few!

Get A Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert

Chloe Brown is a chronically ill computer geek with a goal: She’s come up with seven directives to help her “Get a Life.” But Chloe needs a teacher, and she knows just the man for the job. Red is a handyman with tattoos and a motorcycle, and he’s also an artist who paints at night, which Chloe knows because she spies on him occasionally. But Red clearly resents Chloe’s wealthy background. And he doesn’t want anyone to know what really lies beneath his rough exterior.

Conditions of A Heart by Bethany Mangle

Brynn Kwan is desperate for her high school persona to be real. That Brynn is head of the yearbook committee, the favorite for prom queen, and definitely not crumbling from a secret disability. But during a suspension from school, she realizes that she doesn’t quite recognize the face in the mirror. With a healthy sister who doesn’t understand and a confused ex-boyfriend who won’t take a hint, Brynn begins to wonder if it’s possible to reinvent her world by being herself.

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

A reunion between childhood friends Sam and Sadie Green during college leads to a legendary collaboration that will launch them to stardom. They borrow money, beg favors, and, before even graduating, they have created their first blockbuster game, Ichigo. Overnight, the world is theirs. Sam and Sadie are brilliant, successful, and rich, but these qualities won’t protect them from their own creative ambitions or the betrayals of their hearts.

Only When It’s Us by Chloe Liese

When Willa asked Ryder to borrow his lecture notes in class, the silent, surly, mountain man ignored her. From that moment, she’s made it clear she hates his guts. That’s fine. She is the feisty, tempting chaos he doesn’t need. When they’re forced to work together on their final project, Willa and Ryder begin a game of pranks, each determined to come out the champion. But once they catch unexpected feelings, victory begins to mean something else.

The Girls I’ve Been by Tess Sharpe

Nora O’Malley’s been with a lot of girls. As the daughter of a con-artist who targets criminal men, she grew up as her mother’s protégé. But when her mom fell for the mark instead of conning him, Nora pulled the ultimate con: escape. For five years Nora’s been playing at normal. But she needs to dust off the skills when she ends up in the middle of a bank robbery.

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

Every day, Theodore thinks of ways he might kill himself, but every day he also searches for — and manages to find — something to keep him here, and alive, and awake. Violet lives for the future, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her small town and her grief after her sister’s recent death. When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of a bell tower, it’s unclear who saves whom. As they grow closer, Violet’s world grows, but Finch’s begins to shrink.

Full Disclosure by Camryn Garrett

Simone is starting over at a new school. She’s making real friends and making a play for the guy who makes her melt. The last thing she wants is for word to get out that she’s HIV-positive, because last time, things got ugly. As Simone and Miles start going out for real, she knows she has to tell him that she’s positive, especially if sex is a possibility. And then she finds an anonymous note: I know you have HIV. You have until Thanksgiving to stop hanging out with Miles. Or everyone else will know too. As she gains a deeper understanding of the prejudice and fear in her community, she begins to wonder if the only way to rise above is to face the haters head-on.

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

What if you couldn’t touch anything in the outside world? Never breathe in the fresh air, feel the sun warm your face … or kiss the boy next door? Maddy is a girl who’s literally allergic to the outside world, who hasn’t left her house in 17 years. The only people she ever sees are her mom and her nurse, Carla. But one day, a moving truck arrives next door and she sees Olly — tall, lean and wearing all black. Maddy is certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It’s almost certainly going to be a disaster.

Darius the Great Is Not Okay by Adib Khorram

Darius has never really fit in at home, and he’s sure things are going to be the same in Iran. His clinical depression doesn’t exactly help matters, and trying to explain his medication to his grandparents only makes things harder. Then Darius meets Sohrab, the boy next door, and soon, they’re spending their days together. And Darius has never felt more like himself.

Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

Aza Holmes never intended to pursue the disappearance of fugitive billionaire Russell Pickett, but there’s a hundred-thousand-dollar reward at stake and her Best and Most Fearless Friend, Daisy, is eager to investigate. Aza is trying. She is trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, a good student, and maybe even a good detective, while also living within the ever-tightening spiral of her own thoughts.

The Fall of Whit Rivera by Crystal Maldonado

Frenemies Whit and Zay have been at odds for years (ever since he broke up with her in, like, the most embarrassing way imaginable), so when they’re forced to organize the fall formal together, it’s a literal disaster. Sparks fly as Whitney — type A, passionate, a perfectionist, and a certified sweater-weather fanatic — butts heads with Zay, a dry, relaxed skater boy who takes everything in stride. But not all of those sparks are bad.

I’m not gonna get in a trope-battle with romance readers, but friends to lovers has to be in my top 3 (only one bed and second chance romance are the other best tropes, for those interested). I particularly love when the dummy in the relationship who didn’t realize they were in love realizes it and basically loses their mind. So this season of Bridgerton was made for me — Colin’s face when he sees Penelope eating cake? Art!

If you’re itching for more friends (idiots) to lovers with the HEAs they deserve, check out these book recs!

Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren

Hazel knows she’s a lot to take — and frankly, most men aren’t up to the challenge. Their loss. Josh has known Hazel since college, where her zany playfulness proved completely incompatible with his mellow restraint. Josh has always thought of Hazel more as a spectacle than a peer. But now, ten years later, after a cheating girlfriend has turned his life upside down, going out with Hazel is a breath of fresh air. Not that Josh and Hazel date. At least, not each other. Because setting each other up on progressively terrible double blind dates means there’s nothing between them…right?

People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry

Poppy and Alex have nothing in common. She’s a wild child; he wears khakis. She has an insatiable wanderlust; he prefers to stay home with a book. And somehow they are the very best of friends. For most of the year they live far apart, but every summer, for a decade, they have taken one glorious week of vacation together. Until two years ago, when they ruined everything. They haven’t spoken since. Now Poppy is stuck in a rut. So she convinces her best friend to take one more vacation together. Now she has a week to fix everything. If only she can get around the one big truth that has always stood quietly in the middle of their seemingly perfect relationship. What could possibly go wrong?

Kamila Knows Best by Farah Heron

Kamila is so busy with her friends’ love lives, she’s hardly given any thought to her own. Fortunately, Kamila has Rohan, a longtime friend of the family. Only lately, her “harmless flirting” with Rohan is making her insides do a little bhangra dance. But Kamila isn’t letting herself get distracted — until her secret nemesis returns to town with an eye for Rohan. Suddenly, it seems like the more Kamila tries to plan, the more things are starting to unravel.

Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson

Jesse Strong is known for his devotion to his adoptive mom, Mama Joy, and his reputation for breaking hearts. When Mama Joy unexpectedly passes away, he and his brothers have different plans for what to do with Strong Knits, their knitting store. Part-time employee Kerry Fuller overhears Jesse’s impassioned plea to his brothers to keep the shop open, and volunteers to help. Together they make plans to reinvent Strong Knits. But the more time they spend together, the stronger the chemistry builds between them. 

Girl Gone Viral by Alisah Rai

After a stranger live-tweets Katrina King’s innocent conversation at a coffee shop, #CafeBae has the world swooning. Going viral isn’t easy for anyone, but Katrina has painstakingly built a private world for herself, far from her traumatic past. With the internet on the hunt for her identity, her bodyguard, Jas, offers his family’s farm as a refuge. Alone with her unrequited crush, Katrina is resigned to being just friends with Jas — until they share a single electrifying kiss. 

The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams

Bree Camden is helplessly in love with her longtime best friend and extremely hot NFL legend, Nathan Donelson. But he clearly sees her as a best friend with no romantic potential, and the last thing Bree wants is to ruin their relationship. But after a few tequila shots, Bree spills her deepest, darkest secret to a reporter, and now the world thinks Nathan and Bree are the perfect couple. 

Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison

In an effort to save the Christmas tree farm she’s loved since she was a kid, Stella enters a contest with a $100,000 cash prize. But to make the farm seem like a romantic destination for the holidays, she lied on her application and said she owns Lovelight Farms with her boyfriend. Only…there is no boyfriend. Enter best friend Luka Peters. He just stopped by for some hot chocolate and somehow got a farm and a serious girlfriend in the process. But fake dating his best friend might be the best Christmas present he’s ever received.

Crazy Stupid Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

Alexis Carlisle and her cat café shot to fame after she came forward as a victim of a celebrity chef’s sexual harassment. When a new customer claims they’re sisters, Alexis turns to the only man she trusts — her best friend, Noah Logan. The computer genius has a secret: He’s madly in love with Alexis. Noah’s pals in The Bromance Book Club are more than willing to help him go from bud to boyfriend. But he must decide if telling the truth is worth risking the best friendship he’s ever had.