This is a story told in 10 blocks. It follows many different students on their way home from a day of school, and depicts their unique stories and experiences while also showing where they intersect. It’s many separate stories, while also being the story of a neighborhood. I liked some stories more than others, but all were real and powerful, despite being just snippets of these character’s lives. The kids face so many challenges, from parents with cancer to struggles in friendship, from fears and rejection to finding belonging.

I’d recommend this story to anyone who enjoys reading many different points of view, loves thinking about the webs that connect us, and is willing to travel back to life during middle school.

Noah and his eccentric best friend Walt, AKA "Swing" are trying to find their cool when they realize they haven't yet accomplished their high-school dreams, like making the baseball team or asking out girls they're really in to. A blend of Jazz, baseball, art, and romance is at the core of this story, but it's really about friendship and figuring out who are you and how you define yourself.

While I hear the audiobook is great, I'd suggest a visual copy, since there's some pretty cool black-out poetry and mixed-media art from Noah scatter throughout. The ending of this book took me completely by surprise, and jolted me out of the usual high-school conflicts and tossed me into the deep end of life-altering struggles.

I'd suggest this book for anyone who loves Jazz, who wants to see more meaningful male friendships, and who will try catch the unexpected fly-ball at the end of this story.

Xiomara is quiet and fierce, the daughter of an extremely religious mother and seemingly indifferent father, sister of a twin who's everything her parents wanted. A writer and poet who doesn't share her words with anyone, Xiomara is trying to deal with catching feelings for a boy, questioning her Catholic upbringing, and dealing with the weight of unwanted expectations. She's tempted to join her school's slam poetry club, but isn't sure what she has to share is worth saying, and anyway, it conflicts with her confirmation classes that doesn't even want to be going to. Xiomara, dubbed The Poet X, learns what it means to use her voice.

This novel in verse is charged and brimming with angst that arises from the expectations the world places on Xio's already-tired shoulders. She faces everything in her life with a straight back and clenched fists, ready to defend those she loves. Questioning, brave, and introspective, Xiomara's transformation into the poet with voice is a beautiful one, even if the journey is fraught with struggle.

I'd recommend this novel for anyone who feels like they are expected to be someone they're not, who wants to be heard, but is afraid to speak up, and who loves to see powerful female protagonists come into their own.

Felix is navigating friendships, art school, college prospects, and family life, all while trying to better understand his identity as a queer, trans, black teen. Felix has never been in love, but wants to be more than anything else, other than maybe getting a prestigious scholarship to Brown. When someone hangs up pictures of Felix before his transition and deadnames him, he's devastated, but he's also determined to get revenge. He soons finds out that his feelings about many of his fellow students are more complex than he thought, and he doesn't know who he can trust.

This book is an emotional whirlwind of love, identity, and friendship. Felix is complex, real, and raw. He knows he's trans, but doesn't always feel like a boy, and wants the vocabulary to understand his gender identity. The story is powerfully told from Felix's point of view, and the reader gets a look at his internal monologue and understanding of the people and conflicts that surround him.

I'd recommend this book for anyone who is navigating their own identity (or loves someone who is), who knows what it's like to feel alone in a sea of people, or who wants to better understand the reality of beautiful trans teens like Felix.

Ari works for his parent’s Greek Bakery after graduating from high school, but just wants to move away with his bandmates to the city (despite the fact that some of his bandmates look down on him). He’s in an angsty rut. But then Hector, new in town, comes to work at the bakery, and Ari starts to enjoy himself again. The story follows Ari’s growing relationship with Hector, his dissolving relationship with some of his friends, and his tenuous relationship with his parents.

The story takes place mostly in the bakery, and it's fun to watch Ari and Hector's relationship slowly bloom. Ari is really struggling with where he wants to go and what he wants to do in his life, but realizes the roots he has put down in the bakery are more important than he thought.

I'd recommend this book for anyone who knows what it's like to want to move away, who's suffered from an angsty itch to do something different, and who's up for a cute, queer love story.