Release date not yet known
Spiraling Out by Maya Ameyaw (Annick Press)
"Author of WHEN IT ALL SYNCS UP and the forthcoming UNDER ALL THE LIGHTS Maya Ameyaw's SPIRALING OUT, pitched as SOME GIRLS DO meets SPINNING, about a young Black star figure skater who is forced to come to terms with her OCD, sexuality, and growing attraction to her ex-best friend throughout the countdown to Nationals, to Claire Caldwell at Annick Press, in an exclusive submission, by Lesley Sabga at The Seymour Agency (world English)."
March 3rd
The Little Mosque in my Heart by Ahmad Saber (Atheneum) - moved from April 2025, then from May 2025.
An
intensely brave, gorgeously written story about a gay Muslim teen who
has to choose between being true to himself or his faith—and his
realization that maybe they aren’t as separate as he thought.
Now
a senior at the top-ranked high school for Muslim teenagers, Pakistani
Canadian Ramin can’t wait for the fresh start of college. He’s spent his
whole life following the word of Allah, his parents, and his imam. His
parents immigrated from Pakistan, sacrificing everything for him and his
little brother, and expect Ramin to be halal in all things, meet a nice
Muslim girl, and settle into devout family life. However, Ramin’s heart
wishes for something—or someone— the strong, athletic captain of the
soccer team. But at school, being gay is definitely haram, not allowed,
so Ramin limits himself to dreams of moving away to New York City.
Then
Ramin learns his graduation is in jeopardy, and the only chance he’s
given to get the needed physical education credits quickly is to join
the school’s soccer team…and train one-on-one with Fahad, a.k.a. Captain
Handsome. It’s a nightmare of temptation and resistance, compounded by
threats from a longtime bully who is blackmailing Ramin, threatening to
reveal a secret that could ruin him. Ramin’s only ray of light is Omar, a
sweet and caring new friend whose family believes in a different,
kinder Allah. He gently prods Ramin to consider his faith more deeply,
challenging Ramin’s long held belief of Allah as merciless and
unforgiving by introducing him to one who is instead merciful and
loving.
With graduation, a championship soccer match, and the
blackmail looming, the pressure on Ramin is too much to keep buried. He
must decide between the consequences of speaking his truth and living a
lie. He must decide which Allah lives in the little mosque in his heart.
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