White Rabbit--"I will the ice to thicken over my heart against its fearsome power"

Title: White Rabbit

Author: Caleb Roehrig


LGBTQ+ Representation: Main character identifies as gay; supporting character as bi, m/m relationship


What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Rufus is having a stressful night. First, his ex-boyfriend Sebastian (who broke his heart) reappears in his life. Next, Rufus gets a call from his half-sister April, who has woken up covered in blood--beside the dead body of her boyfriend. Rufus and Sebastian work together to find out who of the privileged rich friends of April is responsible for Fox Whitney's death.


What I think (in 250 words or fewer): I love the pretentious-sounding-rich-people names of the characters in this story: Fox Whitney, Hayden Covington, Race Atwood, Peyton Forsyth, Alexis Carrington Colby--okay that last one is actually from Dynasty, but her name and personality would have fit in at this school because these teenagers are the worst.

Debbie Harry Sings in French--"Dépêches-toi, dépêches-toi et attends" OR "I'm sure the gay community will recover"

Title: Debbie Harry Sings in French

Author: Meagan Brothers


What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Johnny's life has not been easy, but he has persevered and does not want to leave Florida to live in South Carolina. However, Johnny finds that living with  Uncle Sam is better than he thought it would be, especially when he discovers and falls in love with Debbie Harry and Blondie's music at the local music store. Together with his girlfriend, Maria, Johnny learns that he also enjoys dressing up as and *being* Debbie Harry.


What I think (in 250 words or fewer): I have so much respect for Johnny: he runs the household after his father's death when his mother is too depressed to deal with it and he successful completes a stint in rehab for alcohol abuse all before he turns seventeen. And my summary above is a bit out-of-order: Johnny discovers Blondie while still in rehab, then moves to SC, where he idolizes Debbie Harry even more.

Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts)--"Let's talk about sex, baby!" OR "I wish you so much love--because love has nothing to do with sex"

Title: Jack of Hearts (and Other Parts)

Author: L.C. Rosen


What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Jack is an openly gay high school student who is not ashamed of his active sex life. He agrees to write an "anonymous" (technically--most students know he's the writer) teen sex advice column for his friend. Jack enjoys giving advice until someone begins leaving notes in his locker that start out admiring but become threatening. Can Jack figure out who his stalker is before his friends and family are in danger?


What I think: Hey guess what?? This book talks about sex!! And boy, was it ever mentioned in every review and article I read about the book.  Even all of the blurbs on the cover are about how sex-positive the book is. I was actually getting tired of reading every reviewer mention sex, but my curiosity (and excellent employee discount at work) got the best of me, so I bought this book the day it came out.

Lizard Radio--"Life is about ambiguity" OR "The Lizard People were just a red herring!"

Title: Lizard Radio

Author: Pat Schmatz


What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Kivali is sent to CropCamp, a place where the SayFree government sends teenagers go to become productive adult members of society.  Gender-neutral Kivali (nicknamed Lizard) feels different from the other campers, but she knows she must either try to fit in or accept her place as an outcast, which would send her to Blight, a government-sanctioned area for criminals and other non-conforming citizens.  Lizard also wonders: was she sent here from another planet?

What I think (in 250 words or fewer): At the beginning of Lizard Radio, I thought of Scott Westfeld's Uglies because slang was used immediately by the main characters and readers had to figure it out as they read, such as mealio (cafeteria), cleezies (chores), and jazzing (messing around).  Another similarity to the Uglies dystopia was when teenagers came of age, they would be controlled by the government: Uglies with plastic (and brain) surgery and CropCampers with the kickshaw.

Shine--"You can cast off the darkness and shine again, can't you?"

Title: Shine

Author: Lauren Myracle

What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer):  Cat's childhood friend, an openly-gay teenager in the small North Carolina town of Black Creek, was severely beaten and left for dead.  While Patrick lies in a coma, Cat questions everyone in her small town to figure out who did this to Patrick, and also confronts a boy who sexually assaulted her three years previously, as well as systematic poverty, drug addiction, homophobia, racism, and desperation in Black Creek.

What I think (in 250 words or fewer):  The mystery is very easy to figure out, even though I had a sad feeling in my stomach because I did not want for this character to be guilty--I really liked and felt bad for him! I stubbornly held on to the belief that it was another character, the openly "bad guy," but then, surprisingly, he feels remorseful for his actions (and has a solid alibi).