"Jaya’s a rich kid. Rasa’s broke and without guidance. On the edge of adulthood and on the opposite sides of the tracks. Romeo and Juliet, on fair Oahu.
Seventeen-year-old Jaya Mehta detests wealth, secrets, and privilege, though he has them all. His family is Indian, originally from Gujarat. Rasa Santos, like many in Hawaii, is of mixed ethnicity. All she has are siblings, three of them, plus a mother who controls men like a black widow spider and leaves her children whenever she wants to. Neither Jaya nor Rasa have ever known real love or close family—not until their chance meeting one sunny day on a mountain in Hau’ula.
The unlikely love that blooms between them must survive the stranglehold their respective pasts have on them. Each of their present identities has been shaped by years of extreme family struggles. By the time they cross paths, Jaya is a transgender outsider with depressive tendencies and the stunningly beautiful Rasa thinks sex is her only power until a violent pimp takes over her life. Will their love transcend and pull them forward, or will they remain stuck and separate in the chaos of their pasts?
'Patel's captivating prose and memorable characters immerse readers in a tense situation. … A moving story of the healing powers of unconditional love.'—Booklist"
"William C. Morris YA Debut Award Finalist–Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) • Best Fiction for Young Adults–Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) • CCBC Choices–Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) • Amelia Bloomer Book List–American Library Association (ALA) • TAYSHAS Reading List–Texas Library Association (TLA) • BEA Young Adult Book Buzz Pick
In 1990s Moloka’i, Hawai’i, sixteen-year-old Rani is fully present as MC Sutra, whose lyrics say “Call my solution a female revolution / retribution in the form of rhyme electrocution,” but her life is in shambles.
Almost seventeen, Rani Patel appears to be a kick-ass Indian girl breaking cultural norms as a hip-hop performer in full effect. But in truth, she’s a nerdy flat-chested nobody who lives with her Gujarati immigrant parents on the remote Hawaiian island of Moloka’i, isolated from her high school peers by the unsettling norms of Indian culture where “husband is God.”
Her parents’ traditionally arranged marriage is a sham, and her dad turns to her for all his needs—even the intimate ones. When Rani catches him with a woman barely older than herself, she feels like a widow, and—like the widows in India are often made to do—she shaves off her hair.
Her sexy bald head and hard-driving rhyming skills soon attract the attention of Mark, a hot older customer about the same age as her dad who frequents her parents’ store. When Mark makes his move, Rani goes with it and finds herself working with 4eva Flowin’, an underground hip hop crew. And with Mark, she finds herself doing other things she’s never done.
Rani ignores the red flags. Her naive choices look like they will undo her but ultimately give her the chance to discover her strengths and restore the things she thought she’d lost, including her mother.
'Though suffering is at the core of this debut novel, it's also about living through pain by harnessing what brings happiness. And the dip into '90s nostalgia, not to mention the awesome Rani persevering and conquering as MC Sutra—but more important, as herself—makes reading all the slam poetry well worth it.'—New York Times"
"Sixteen-year-old Rocky’s future as the crime boss of Seoul’s Three Star Pa gang seems fated—until he discovers that his violent father has lied about everything.
Rocky’s the most loyal 16-year-old you’ll ever meet: loyal to the Three Star Pa gang, which his father runs in Seoul, Korea; loyal to his best friends, who accompany him everywhere he goes; loyal to his ever-escalating public bullying of Ha-na, a girl at school; and, finally, loyal to the memory of his mother, even though there are some things about her that he tries to forget. He loves his friends, his city, and the power he wields. But when he catches his father in a lie, the truth is exposed, and his life begins to unravel—and Rocky has no idea where his future is going to lead.
'Patel's language is beautifully descriptive and filled with introspection, and she includes detailed, vivid accounts of the city's landscape and food. This is a heartrending tale about the trauma and pain people carry and impose onto others. Readers who follow Rocky's inner dialogue and forays through memory will be rewarded with an evocative read.'—School Library Journal"
"From the author of the Morris Award finalist Rani Patel in Full Effect comes a sharply written novel about a college freshman who has escaped her traditional Gujarati upbringing . . . but suppressed memories are starting to bubble to the surface.
"A tough read that's worth the discomfort."-Kirkus Reviews
"Gita reclaiming her voice is worth the journey."-Booklist
It's eighteen-year-old Gita Desai's first year at Stanford University, and the fact that she's here and not already married off by her very traditional Indian American parents is a miracle. She's determined to death-grip her good-girl, model-student rep all the way to med school . . . which means no social life or standing out in any way. But when two of the most popular girls on campus take her under their wing, starry-eyed Gita quickly loses herself in the intoxicating world of college parties and casual hookups. And with each new experience, flashbacks of childhood sexual assault-memories she had long ago buried-unearth themselves, unraveling everything she thought she knew.
The more Gita tries to navigate the confusing world of college and consent, the more she's forced to face the heart-breaking truth of what happened to her. It'll take a special kind of courage, plus help from her newfound friends, for her to burst forward and stop shutting up about the past."
"Sixteen extraordinary authors subvert mental health stereotypes in this powerful and uplifting mix-genre collection of fiction.
A boxer whose strength is tested more outside the ring than in it. A hiker who develops magical powers when her serotonin is finally balanced. A teen activist wrestling with protest-related anxiety and PTSD. A boy whose uncontrollable tears help enable another’s healing …
In this inspiring, unflinching, and hope-filled mixed-genre collection, sixteen diverse and notable authors draw on their own lived experiences with mental health conditions to create stunning works of fiction that will uplift and empower you, break your heart and stitch it back together stronger than before.
Through powerful prose and verse, the characters in this anthology defy stereotypes and remind readers that living with a mental health condition doesn’t mean you are defined by it."
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