The Secret Summer Promise

March 13, 2023
Seventeen-year-old Andrea and her best friend Hailee have prepared a Best Summer Ever list filled with activities, including attending a Lizzo concert, going thrifting, skinny-dipping, and binge-watching Drew Barrymore films. Andrea also has her own secret goal: falling out of love with Hailee. After becoming estranged from her other best friend, Olivia, Andrea is hesitant to potentially ruin her friendship with Hailee by confessing her feelings; she also struggles with the belief that her cerebral palsy will prevent anyone from loving her. When classmate George starts expressing interest in Andrea, however, she begins realizing that people do find her attractive. But after Hailee learns that Andrea has been ditching her to hang out with George, the summer sours with Hailee’s hurt feelings and Andrea’s guilt. Lighthearted romance that’s sure to gratify and meaningful conversations surrounding friendship and first love drive this earnest treat from Brown (Sam’s Super Seats), which boasts leisurely pacing that mimics the syrupy unraveling of a slow, hot summer. Andrea is Black, Hailee is Chinese, George has green eyes and brown hair. Ages 12– up. Agent: Alexander Slater, Sanford J. Greenburger Assoc.

April 1, 2023
When a girl falls in love with her best friend, will it lead to a tragedy of errors? Andrea, a painter, is planning an amazing summer with her friends. Last summer's adventures were lost to recovery from a cerebral palsy surgery, so this year's "Best Summer Ever" list is ambitious: an art show for Andrea; skinny-dipping for Hailee, her Chinese American bestie; a Drew Barrymore movie marathon for both of them. But there's one big problem: Andrea's crush. Though the queer, Black 17-year-old is well loved, well off, and talented, she doesn't know how to tell Hailee that she's fallen hard for her--and her internalized self-loathing is crushing. Perhaps if Andrea dates a popular boy she can get over her feelings for Hailee? To readers, it's clear that Andrea and Hailee share mutual feels, and disaster looms over all this secret keeping, but Andrea struggles in miserable ignorance until the inevitable friendship explosion. During all this secret (and painfully messy) pining, Andrea grows in both empathy and self-respect. The dialogue is often stilted and unnatural, but the girls (and their multiracial, multi-ability, multi-sexuality friendship circle) are affectionate and dedicated to each other. Race, sexuality, and disability are not Andrea's roadblocks, though they're all obviously central to her identity and her life. Her difficulties come from everyday teen drama--and it is resoundingly, emphatically expressed drama. For fans of messy queer romance, some realistically complicated representation. (Fiction. 12-16)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 1, 2023

Gr 7-10-The summer after a serious surgery related to her cerebral palsy, Andrea is ready to complete an epic summer bucket list. As she begins to check off each item with her bestie Hailee, one major problem presents itself: Andrea realizes she's actually in love with her best friend. Andrea fights her feelings until the crush she forces herself to have on a male classmate seems to shatter their friendship into pieces. Misunderstanding and miscommunication are at the heart of the conflict, pushing the plot forward quickly but frustratingly. With some help from supportive parents and an extensive friend group, the two girls come together as a sweet love story unfolds. Though the girls are 17, the dialogue and the motivations behind the friendship drama read much younger, making this a more relatable title for tween readers. Andrea's disability is treated with care and honesty, often interrogating and inverting the harmful stereotypes readers may have come to expect from a disabled protagonist. Andrea is Black, Hailee is Chinese American, and their friend group is believably diverse. VERDICT Young teens who want a lighthearted, queer, friends-to-lovers summer romp filled with authentic representation will find plenty to love in this debut.-Allison Staley

Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2023
Grades 9-12 Andrea, an aspiring artist, is ready for her summer to start. She plans for sleepovers and movies, and even to finish a significant art project. But after their friendship turns rocky, she must first fall out of love with her best friend, Hailee. When a popular classmate suddenly seems to like her--the shy Black girl with cerebral palsy--Andrea will need to learn to listen her heart before the summer ends. Brown (The Pretty One, 2019) writes her YA debut as a whirlwind summer romance with all the messy emotions of first love. Brown deconstructs the clich� of the love triangle and uses it as a tool for readers to gain deeper insight into Andrea's character development as she builds bridges with a frenemy and, through a particularly poignant ending, works on her art. Brown constructs a realistic setting with casual diversity among the main cast and background characters, emphasizing that everyone deserves a love story. Put this book full of queer joy and self-love on the shelf next to Camryn Garrett and Becky Albertalli.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.