Top Ten Tuesday | July 6, 2021

Happy Tuesday!

Top Ten Tuesday is a Bookish Meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, and this week’s theme is REASONS I LOVE READING! (Spoiler Alert: That’s Not What I Did!)

Happy Tuesday! Last week’s Most Anticipated Books got me thinking about my Favorite Books of 2021, so this week that’s what I listed instead! I can’t believe I ever lived in a world without these ten books. All of them are queer, several of them are fat, and Speak for Yourself stars Skylar, who is fat, chronically ill, ace, and nerdy (just like me)! I’m so happy that these books exist, and I hope that they make other people as happy as they made me!

And now without any further ado, here’s this week’s Top Ten Tuesday!

Speak for Yourself by Lana Wood Johnson
Published on June 1, 2021 by Scholastic Press
Genres: Queer, Aspec, YA, Contemporary, Neurodivergent, Retellings, Romance
Pages: 352
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Girl meets boy. Girl likes boy. Girl gets friend to help win boy. Friend ends up with crush on boy...
Skylar's got ambitious #goals. And if she wants them to come true, she has to get to work now. (At least she thinks so...) Step one in her epic plan is showing everyone that her latest app is brilliant. To do that, she's going to use it win State at the Scholastic Exposition, the nerdiest academic competition around.
First, she'll need a team, and Skylar's not always so good with people. But she'll do whatever it takes to put one together ... even if it means playing Cupid for her teammates Joey and Zane, at Joey's request. When things get off to an awkward start for them, Skylar finds herself stepping in to help Joey. Anything to keep her on the team. Only, Skylar seems to be making everything more complicated. Especially when she realizes she might be falling for Zane, which was not a #goal. Can Skylar figure out her feelings, prove her app's potential to the world, and win State without losing her friends--or is her path to greatness over before it begins?

It Goes Like This by Miel Moreland
Published on May 18, 2021 by Feiwel & Friends
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, YA, Queer
Pages: 352
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Author Links: Website, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram

Eva, Celeste, Gina, and Steph used to think their friendship was unbreakable. After all, they've been though a lot together, including the astronomical rise of Moonlight Overthrow, the world-famous queer pop band they formed in middle school, never expecting to headline anything bigger than the county fair.
But after a sudden falling out leads to the dissolution of the teens' band, their friendship, and Eva and Celeste's starry-eyed romance, nothing is the same. Gina and Celeste step further into the spotlight, Steph disappears completely, and Eva, heartbroken, takes refuge as a songwriter and secret online fangirl...of her own band. That is, until a storm devastates their hometown, bringing the four ex-best-friends back together. As they prepare for one last show, they'll discover whether growing up always means growing apart.

Lucky Girl by Jamie Pacton
Published on May 11, 2021 by Page Street Kids
Genres: Queer, Contemporary, YA
Pages: 240
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Author Links: Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok

58,642,129. That’s how many dollars seventeen-year-old Fortuna Jane Belleweather just won in the lotto jackpot. It’s also about how many reasons she has for not coming forward to claim her prize.
Problem #1: Jane is still a minor, and if anyone discovers she bought the ticket underage, she’ll either have to forfeit the ticket, or worse...
Problem #2: Let her hoarder mother cash it. The last thing Jane’s mom needs is millions of dollars to buy more junk. Then...
Problem #3: Jane’s best friend, aspiring journalist Brandon Kim, declares on the news that he’s going to find the lucky winner. It’s one thing to keep her secret from the town — it’s another thing entirely to lie to her best friend. Especially when...
Problem #4: Jane’s ex-boyfriend, Holden, is suddenly back in her life, and he has big ideas about what he’d do with the prize money. As suspicion and jealousy turn neighbor against neighbor, and no good options for cashing the ticket come forward, Jane begins to wonder: Could this much money actually be a bad thing?

Chaos on CatNet (CatNet #2) by Naomi Kritzer
Series: CatNet #2
Also in this series: Catfishing on CatNet, Chaos on CatNet
Published on April 27, 2021 by Tor Teen
Genres: Alternate History, Queer, Contemporary, Futuristic, Mystery, Neurodivergent, Science Fiction, Thriller, YA
Pages: 304
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Author Links: Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram

In this follow-up to the award-winning near future YA thriller Catfishing on CatNet, It takes an AI to catch an AI…
When a mysterious entity starts hacking into social networks and chat rooms to instigate paranoia and violence in the real world, it’s up to Steph and her new friend, Nell, to find a way to stop it—with the help of their benevolent AI friend, CheshireCat.

Kate in Waiting by Becky Albertalli
Published on April 20, 2021 by Balzer + Bray
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Queer, YA
Pages: 400
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Author Links: Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram, Tumblr

Contrary to popular belief, best friends Kate Garfield and Anderson Walker are not codependent. Carpooling to and from theater rehearsals? Environmentally sound and efficient. Consulting each other on every single life decision? Basic good judgment. Pining for the same guys from afar? Shared crushes are more fun anyway.
But when Kate and Andy’s latest long-distance crush shows up at their school, everything goes off script. Matt Olsson is talented and sweet, and Kate likes him. She really likes him. The only problem? So does Anderson.
Turns out, communal crushes aren’t so fun when real feelings are involved. This one might even bring the curtains down on Kate and Anderson’s friendship.

Every Body Shines: Sixteen Stories About Living Fabulously Fat by Cassandra Newbould, Nafiza Azad, Chris Baron, Sheena Boekweg, Linda Camacho, Kelly deVos, Alex Gino, Claire Kann, Amanda Lovelace, Hillary Monahan, Francina Simone, Rebecca Sky, Monique Gray Smith, Renée Watson, Catherine Adel West, Jennifer Yen
Published on June 8, 2021 by Bloomsbury YA
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, YA, Anthology, Queer, Aspec
Pages: 416
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An intersectional, feminist YA anthology from some of today's most exciting voices across a span of genres, all celebrating body diversity and fat acceptance through short stories.
Fat girls and boys and nonbinary teens are: friends who lift each other up, heroes who rescue themselves, big bodies in space, intellects taking up space, and bodies looking and feeling beautiful. They express themselves through fashion, sports and other physical pursuits, through food, and music, and art. They are flirting and falling in love. They are loving to themselves and one another. With stories that feature fat main characters starring in a multitude of stories and genres, and written by authors who live these lives too, this is truly a unique collection that shows fat young people the representation they deserve.
With a foreword by Aubry Gordon, creator of Your Fat Friend, and with stories by: Nafiza Azad, Chris Baron, Sheena Boekweg, Linda Camacho, Kelly deVos, Alex Gino, Claire Kann, amanda lovelace, Hillary Monahan, Cassandra Newbould, Francina Simone, Rebecca Sky, Monique Gray Smith, Renée Watson, Catherine Adel West, Jennifer Yen

A History of What Comes Next by Sylvain Neuvel
Series: Take Them to the Stars #1
Also in this series: A History of What Comes Next
Published on February 2, 2021 by Tor.com
Genres: Queer, Thriller, Adult, Alternate History, Historical Fiction, Science Fiction
Pages: 304
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Always run, never fight. Preserve the knowledge. Survive at all costs. Take them to the stars.
Over 99 identical generations, Mia’s family has shaped human history to push them to the stars, making brutal, wrenching choices and sacrificing countless lives. Her turn comes at the dawn of the age of rocketry. Her mission: to lure Wernher Von Braun away from the Nazi party and into the American rocket program, and secure the future of the space race.
But Mia’s family is not the only group pushing the levers of history: an even more ruthless enemy lurks behind the scenes.
A darkly satirical first contact thriller, as seen through the eyes of the women who make progress possible and the men who are determined to stop them...

Muse by Brittany Cavallaro
Series: Muse #1
Also in this series: Muse
Published on February 2, 2021 by Katherine Tegen Books
Genres: Fantasy, Queer, YA, Alternate History, Historical Fiction, Romance
Pages: 332
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Author Links: Website, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram, Tumblr

The year is 1893, and war is brewing in the First American Kingdom. But Claire Emerson has a bigger problem. While her father prepares to reveal the mighty weapon he’s created to showcase the might of their province, St. Cloud, in the World’s Fair, Claire is crafting a plan to escape.
Claire’s father is a sought-after inventor, but he believes his genius is a gift, granted to him by his daughter’s touch. He’s kept Claire under his control for years. As St. Cloud prepares for war, Claire plans to claim her life for herself, even as her best friend, Beatrix, tries to convince her to stay and help with the growing resistance movement that wants to see a woman on the throne. At any cost.
When her father’s weapon fails to fire on the fair’s opening day, Claire is taken captive by Governor Remy Duchamp, St. Cloud’s young, untried ruler. Remy believes that Claire’s touch bestows graces he’s never had, and with his governing power weakening and many political rivals planning his demise, Claire might be his only and best ally. But the last thing that Claire has ever wanted is to be someone else’s muse. Still, affections can change as quickly as the winds of war. And Claire has a choice to make: Will she quietly remake her world from the shadows—or bring it down in flames?

Follow Your Arrow by Jessica Verdi
Published on March 2, 2021 by Scholastic Press
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, YA, Queer
Pages: 320
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CeCe Ross is kind of a big deal. She and her girlfriend, Silvie, are social media influencers with zillions of fans and followers, known for their cute outfits and being #relationshipgoals.
So when Silvie breaks up with her, CeCe is devastated. She's lost her first love, and now she can't help but wonder if she'll lose her followers as well.
Things get even messier when CeCe meets Josh, a new boy in town who is very much Not Online. CeCe isn't surprised to be falling for a guy; she's always known she's bi. And Josh is sweet and smart and has excellent taste in donuts... but he has no idea that CeCe is internet-famous. And CeCe sort of wants to keep it that way.
But when CeCe's secrets catch up to her, she finds herself in the middle of an online storm, where she'll have to confront the blurriness of public vs. private life, and figure out what it really means to speak her truth.

A Sisterhood of Secret Ambitions by Sheena Boekweg
Published on June 1, 2021 by Feiwel & Friends
Genres: Queer, Romance, YA, Alternate History, Historical Fiction, Neurodivergent, Aspec
Pages: 352
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Author Links: Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Amazon, Instagram

Behind every powerful man is a trained woman, and behind every trained woman is the Society. It started with tea parties and matchmaking, but is now a countrywide secret. Gossips pass messages in recipes, Spinsters train to fight, and women work together to grant safety to abused women and children. The Society is more than oaths—it is sisterhood and purpose.
In 1926, seventeen-year-old Elsie is dropped off in a new city with four other teenage girls. All of them have trained together since childhood to become the Wife of a powerful man. But when they learn that their next target is earmarked to become President, their mission becomes more than just an assignment; this is a chance at the most powerful position in the Society. All they have to do is make one man fall in love with them first.

What are your favorite books of 2021 (the first half)? Let me know in the comments below and have a splendiferous week!