Summer is Here and So Are Summer Reads!

Nala is looking forward to a fun summer hanging out with her friends and cousin Imani, watching shows and movies and eating ice cream. When she heads to an open mic night with Imani, she meets Tye, and she falls hard. The only problem? Tye is really into community activism and organization, and Nala sort of lets him believe she’s far more into those things than she really is. As their summer love progresses and her relationship with Imani falters, Nala will have to learn that the most radical love is self-love.

Codi and her two best friends Maritza and JaKory think their summer will be just like the last one (boring), so Maritza and JaKory come up with a plot to find love. Codi is less outgoing and not as certain about their plan, so she refuses to attend a party with them, only to have to come and bail them out later. But doing so connects Codi with Ricky, another queer teen, and they hit it off. Soon, Codi is fully absorbed into Ricky’s friend group and she has a new crush…but she hasn’t told her best friends about any of it. I loved that this book is about identity beyond coming out, and it portrays large friend groups so well.

Just days before her family leaves for a week-long trip to Hawaii, Ada finds out that her boyfriend has been cheating on her. Devastated, she’s dragged along on the family trip with her know-it-all older sister and eager younger sister, and a distracted mom. Worst of all? Their dad stays behind at the last minute. Ada knows this can’t be good for the family, but things go from bad to worse when she witnesses her mom having sex with another man. Suddenly Ada’s week in paradise is full of secrets and big questions about what the future holds.

Nima is a biracial teen lesbian who has had been struggling since her mom walked out on her and her dad. At the start of the summer, she and a friend head to their small town’s summer festival where Nima walks into a tent with a drag performance, and her life is changed. She connects with a queen named Deirdre, who takes Nima under her wing, and meets Winnow, a beautiful girl and drag king performer that makes her heart sing. As Nima enters into this exciting and complex world, she has to find the confidence to be herself, and face her own hurt.

Lara has had a crush on Chase all throughout high school, and now her summer seems to be coming together perfectly when Chase finally notices her, too. But the only thing that is holding her back? The sudden reappearance of Jasmine, a fun and beautiful girl that she spent a perfect summer with, one that Lara hasn’t ever been able to banish from her mind. Chase could be Lara’s…but Jasmine is proving to be quite the distraction.

Becca and KJ are two estranged cousins who haven’t seen each other in ages, until they meet again at their grandfather’s funeral. Grandpa left them each an inheritance, but it comes with strings attached—they have to complete Grandpa’s bucket list, which entails them road tripping across the country. Together. They aren’t at all pleased about this development, but this summer of bucket lists and exploration gives way to a deeper understanding of each other and the feud that tore their family apart, and hopefully a way to mend that rift.