Pink - Softcover

“I never wore pink. Pink wasn’t cool. Pink wasn’t existential,” explains Ava as her story of identity confusion begins. But clad in cotton-candy cashmere, she starts life at a posh new private school where both academic success and a smooth conformity seem the norm. Too bad Ava has to hide her desires from both her aggressively antiestablishment parents and her supersophisticated but desperately jaded girlfriend, Chloe, who’s been left behind in public school. Ava, despite coming out as a lesbian, especially feels the need to hide the thought that she might want to kiss a boy. The change of environment creates its own perplexities, foremost among them Ava’s encounters with a bunch of theater-crew misfits. How to make the world of the “screws,” Chloe, and the more conventional new school friends fit together (or not) powers Ava’s narrative. Written with a great deal of snarky wit, this Australian import never gets overly heavy despite all the hand-wringing. A refreshing addition to the LGBT oeuvre. Grades 8-11. --Karen Cruze