
Reach for this book when your teenager is grappling with the weight of first love, the beauty of self-expression, or the anxiety of a world that feels increasingly precarious for marginalized communities. It is a vital resource for parents whose children are navigating their gender identity or seeking to understand the harsh realities of the immigration system through a lens of empathy rather than statistics. The story follows Ander, a nonbinary muralist, and Santi, an undocumented waiter, as they fall in love in San Antonio. Beyond the romance, the book explores how art serves as a sanctuary and a form of protest. It is a deeply moving, mature contemporary novel that honors the intensity of teenage emotions while providing a realistic look at the systemic forces that threaten chosen families. Choose this to normalize nonbinary identities and to spark meaningful dialogue about justice and belonging.
Teen romance with some physical intimacy and sexual references.
The fear and trauma of deportation and separation from loved ones is central.
Deportation, encounters with ICE, systemic racism, police presence, physical violence related to an arrest, and the emotional trauma of family separation.
A 16 or 17-year-old who feels deeply connected to their community and is beginning to understand the political forces that affect their friends and loved ones. This is for the reader who values art as a tool for survival and needs to see a queer romance that is treated with maturity and high stakes.
Parents should be prepared for the intense depiction of an ICE raid and its aftermath. The book can be read cold, but it is helpful to be ready to discuss the specific legal and social hurdles faced by undocumented youth in the United States. A teenager might express deep anxiety or anger about news headlines regarding immigration raids, or they might be experiencing the fear of a friend or partner being forced to leave the country.
Younger teens will focus on the electric chemistry of the first love and the beauty of the muralist culture. Older teens will more fully grasp the systemic critique and the crushing weight of the precarious legal status that defines the protagonists' future.
Unlike many immigration stories that focus solely on the struggle, this novel also explores the challenges faced by a nonbinary protagonist navigating the complexities of undocumented status, proving that queer joy and cultural pride can exist even within the most restrictive systems. """
Ander is a nonbinary Mexican-American muralist taking a gap year to work at their family's restaurant in San Antonio. When Santi, a new waiter, is hired, an intense and life-altering romance begins. As their bond deepens through art and shared heritage, the threat of ICE and the reality of Santi's undocumented status create a high-stakes environment where love must contend with systemic injustice.
This overview was generated by AI based on the book's content and reviews, and may not capture every nuance.
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