On Again, Awkward Again

Gr 6-10–Pacy and Curtis meet in the nurse’s office near the start of their freshman year, and it’s anything but cute. The nurse is treating Pacy’s busted and profusely bleeding lip, while Curtis has rushed to use the private bathroom when his IBS flares up. Curtis, a drummer and Star Wars expert, designs his own clothes. Somewhat-klutzy Pacy adheres to Star Trek: The Next Generation and feels that the whole student body is filled with “Borgs”—assimilated and boring. Neither is looking for love, but each feels butterflies immediately when they meet. When they both get added to the freshman formal committee, they get a chance to know one another better, but the mishaps begin to add up. The twist to this quite adorable novel, told by Pacy and Curtis in alternating chapters, is not will they get together, but how can they possibly get together when the universe seems to be conspiring against them? Collaborators Kelly (a two-time Newbery winner) and Mbalia (of “Tristan Strong” fame) match each other word for word with moments that are both laugh-out-loud and tender. Some subplots might not completely come to fruition, but the lead characters and their supportive friends and family make this book rise above its plot. Readers will want to spend time with these characters, even once Pacy and Curtis become one of “those” couples. Pacy is Filipino American; Curtis is Black.