THE 84 by Sonja Perryman
1968. South Central Los Angeles. Aretha Franklin’s “I Say A Little Prayer” blares on KGFG radio, as the Vietnam War explodes on the nightly news. A time of great upheaval. And progress. Fourteen-year-old Shay rides the #84 bus across town to school every day. And on the bus, she witnesses the changing cultural, social, and political landscape of the city. She also secretly admires other girls, but no one knows. Not even her best friend, Big Rita, and especially not her single mother, Loretta, who she often bumps heads with. Feeling unloved by her mom and unseen by her community, Shay runs away from home in search of her father. Along the way she meets Bernard, a fellow queer Black person who helps Shay realize she doesn’t need to search outside of herself for love and validation. She also reconnects with her alcoholic grandmother, which prompts Shay to recognize her mother’s trauma and understand that Loretta has always done the best she can for Shay. We also learn that Loretta has kept Shay's father a secret not out of spite, but protection. Shay returns home finally knowing that she’s loved by Loretta and Big Rita. And most importantly, she loves herself just as she is.
ALL-AMERICAN BOY by Nate Gualtieri
High school can be a challenging place to navigate for anyone, and as a closeted transgendered teen boy, Cam Taber has a bit more on his plate than most. A star runner on the girls track and field team, he wants nothing more than to race with the boys, and live as one. Working out and downing protein shakes only does so much, so he hatches a plan to steal testosterone for a popular boy on the team who is using it illegally, with his closeted gay friend Shaan as an accomplice. Unfortunately, drug testing for the sports teams reveals what he has done, and puts his potential college scholarship at Barnard women's college in jeopardy. While he is invited to practice with the boys team, he gets into a fight with jock Brooks, which leads to additional trouble. Ultimately, Cam finally admits to his parents that he is transgendered, and they accept him as he is while awkwardly navigating the change. He is also able to make amends to pals Shaan and Amber, whom he took for granted along the way. While college may not be in the cards immediately, Cam is ready to start his life as a man with eyes open, finally settling into who he was always meant to be.
ANGEL ISLAND by Kevin Shen
1924. Jefferson, a Chinese-American who works as a translator on Angel island (the Ellis Island of the American West), has always lived by the rules, believing that those immigrating to the US will be accepted if they are honest and truthful. However, when his Uncle Mou Zyu asks him to help get his daughter off of the island and into San Francisco, Jefferson begins to see the immigration system for what it really is: racist and rigged. Jefferson’s by-the-book world begins to crumble as he see the horrors of xenophobia and racism play out, both in his professional and personal lives.
BREAKAWAY by William Casey
Tracy is a shy accountant with low-self-esteem. After an eclipse, her childhood vision board suddenly becomes a reality. She becomes prettier, more confident, and able to flirt with her long time crush: her boss Ryan. She also gains the confidence to propose a new scheme, which earns her a promotion at her job. After many mishaps, she realizes some pictures disappearing from the board, and her new gained abilities gone with them. She finally understands that she could achieve those things by herself, and ends up together with Ryan (and also saves his business).
CALIFORNY by Danielle Krudy
In 1929, a girl torn between her familiar life in rural Oklahoma and the promise of burgeoning Los Angeles fights to realize her dreams.
DAYS IN THE WAKE by Dina Fiasconaro
After a young woman’s father abandons her six younger siblings at a Safe Haven facility and disappears, she embarks on a quest to find them, and get answers to his seemingly unconscionable actions.
GHOSTIES by Julie Sharbutt
When two best friends escape for a weekend to oversee a family rental property, they stumble on a weird and scary secret that changes the way they see each other.
KUDZU by Marisa Forrest
CHILDREN OF THE CORN meets SHERRYBABY – A recovering addict must rescue her estranged son from an “orphanage,” which is actually a front for a sinister evangelical cult that turns children into murderous criminals.
NEW HAMPSHIRE BOY by Patrick Clement
Kevin expertly panhandles, living on the streets. He's only 17 but he's been doing this for a while. When he and his best friend Bob, clean-cut and coming from money, decide to run away to San Francisco, the only bus tickets they can afford are for next week. So they spend their seven extra days with girls, until Kevin learns that Bob is not only gay, but in love with him. Kevin flippantly kisses Bob and then wrestles with him, accidentally hurting him. Bob leaves him, and Kevin spends this time visiting people from his life. But he's can never stay long, unable to accept affection. He has sex with a male police officer for money, when he runs into Bob. They make up and decide to resume their trip, but Bob lost the bus tickets. They steal from a water park, get caught, lose the cash, but find the kid who stole their bus tickets. Kevin beats him up and they end up in jail, but the police officer who had sex with Kevin lets them off. Bob realizes Kevin is always going to be distant and non-committal. He may love Bob back, but can never own his feelings. So they kiss and Bob leaves for good. Kevin takes the bus to San Francisco, wearing Bob's jacket.
ROADKILL by Martha Gregory & Drew Lewis
Deb, whose job is picking up roadkill, gets a new partner, rebellious Julie. They really butt heads at first, but eventually cometo really care about each other. There are some fights and a lot of animal deaths but in the end Julie finds that she might have some & aspirations after all, and Deb decides to leave her cheating husband and be with her old work partner Marv.
