Race in America (Fiction)

Katsuyamas never quit -- but seventeen-year-old CJ doesn't even know where to start. She's never lived up to her mom's type A ambition, and she's perfectly happy just helping her aunt, Hannah, at their family's flower shop. She doesn't buy into Hannah's romantic ideas about flowers and their hidden meanings, but when it comes to arranging the perfect bouquet, CJ discovers a knack she never knew she had. A skill she might even be proud of.

Allie Abraham has it all going for her—she’s a straight-A student, with good friends and a close-knit family, and she’s dating popular, sweet Wells Henderson. One problem: Wells’s father is Jack Henderson, America’s most famous conservative shock jock, and Allie hasn’t told Wells that her family is Muslim. It’s not like Allie’s religion is a secret. It’s just that her parents don’t practice, and raised her to keep it to herself.

Natasha believes in science and facts. So when she meets a cute boy, Daniel  on a crowded New York City streets and falls in love with him, she needs to figure out what to do. Especially because her family is twelve hours away from being deported to Jamaica. And Daniel, always the good son, the good student, living up to his parents' high expectations, needs to figure out what he really wants.

Black Enough is a collection of stories about what it’s like to be young and Black in America. Black is...sisters navigating their relationship at summer camp in Portland, Oregon, as written by Renée Watson. Black is…three friends walking back from the community pool talking about nothing and everything, in a story by Jason Reynolds. Black is…Nic Stone’s high-class beauty dating a boy her momma would never approve of. Black is…two girls kissing in Justina Ireland’s story set in Maryland.

When Louise Wolfe (Muscogee Creek) sees her boyfriend mock and disrespect Native people in front of her, she breaks it off and dumps him over e-mail. She'd rather spend her senior year with her family and friends and working on the school newspaper. Paired up with Joey Kairouz, an ambitious new photojournalist, Lou covers the backlash to the school musical director's inclusive approach to casting The Wizard of Oz. As tensions mount at school, so does a romance between Lou and Joey. But 'dating while Native' can be difficult.

When Marvin Johnson’s twin, Tyler, is found dead after a party, a video leaked online tells an even more chilling story: Tyler has been shot and killed by a police officer. Terrified as his mother unravels and mourning a brother who is now a hashtag, Marvin must learn what justice and freedom really mean.

Fifteen-year-old Verdad is struggling to process the recent death of her best friend, Blanca; dealing with the high expectations of her hardworking Puerto Rican mother and the absence of her remarried father; and keeping everyone at a distance. But when she meets Danny, a new guy at school—who happens to be trans—all bets are off. A powerful exploration of love, identity, and self-worth through the eyes of a fierce, questioning Puerto Rican teen.

Jade believes she must get out of her poor neighborhood if she's ever going to succeed. But some opportunities she doesn't really welcome, like an invitation to join Women to Women, a mentorship program for "at-risk" girls. Just because her mentor is black and graduated from the same high school doesn't mean she understands where Jade is coming from. 

Frank Li, a Korean American whose parents expect him to date a Korean girl, falls in love for the very first time with Brit Means, who is white. Desperate to be with Brit without his parents finding out, Frank turns to family friend Joy Song, who is in a similar bind. Together, they come up with a plan to help each other and keep their parents off their backs. 

An award-winning Indian-American author illuminates the immigrant experience for one family with humor and heart. Told in alternating teen voices across three generations, this novel explores sisterhood, first loves, friendship, and the inheritance of culture, for better or worse.