by Nic Stone
Read by the author and Dion Graham
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Or listen at Libro.fm
Content: There is some mild swearing (I don’t remember any f-bombs); teenage drinking; talk of mental health, self-harm, and a parental affair. It’s in the Teen (grades 9+) section of the bookstore.

Ever since Shelbi moved to Georgia, she has one rule: don’t get close to anyone. A former “friend” hurt her badly at her last school, and her mental health can’t handle it. What she doesn’t count on is Andy, who she passes one night, sitting in the back of a cop car, having totaled his car because he was wasted. In fact, he seems to often have too much to drink. As they fall into friendship, and become closer, they both realize that there’s a lot ot unpack. Shelbi with her bipolar diagnosis, Andy with his self-medicating with alcohol (not to mention a distant mother, and the death of a younger sister that he blames himself for).

This has to be one of the cutest books about really tough subjects that I’ve eve read. I loved the dynamic between Andy and Shelbi – Dion Graham was a specatular narrator, and Stone was quite good as well – and the way they both supported and pushed each other. It was a very cute romance, but underneath was all the hard-hitting issues that Stone is known for. She looks very unflinchingly at mental health, grief, substance abuse, and what it takes to make a relationship really work.

In short, it was an excellent book, especially on audio.