13 new YA releases that belong on your May reading list
By Lacy Baugher
May 2021 release: Cool for the Summer – Dahlia Adler
A charming, timely story about a high school student who tries to keep a summer fling – and her burgeoning questions about her own sexuality – a secret, Cool for the Summer is the even-handed, thoughtful exploration of a teenage girl’s attempt to find herself.
The story follows Lara, who returns to New York from a summer in the Outer Banks with a styling new haircut and a fresh determination to make the most of her senior year. She’s finally managed to catch the eye of her long-time unrequited crush Chase, but her life is turned upside down when her summer fling, Jasmine, moves to the city. Having only ever been attracted to boys before but now unable to stop thinking about Jasmine, Lara begins questioning who she is in new and confusing ways.
Cool for the Summer is a story of self-discovery and new love. It’s about the things we want and the things we need. And it’s about the people who will let us be who we are.
The official synopsis has more detail about the story.
"Lara’s had eyes for exactly one person throughout her three years of high school: Chase Harding. He’s tall, strong, sweet, a football star, and frankly, stupid hot. Oh, and he’s talking to her now. On purpose and everything. Maybe…flirting, even? No, wait, he’s definitely flirting, which is pretty much the sum of everything Lara’s wanted out of life. Except she’s haunted by a memory. A memory of a confusing, romantic, strangely perfect summer spent with a girl named Jasmine. A memory that becomes a confusing, disorienting present when Jasmine herself walks through the front doors of the school to see Lara and Chase chatting it up in front of the lockers. Lara has everything she ever wanted: a tight-knit group of friends, a job that borders on cool, and Chase, the boy of her literal dreams. But if she’s finally got the guy, why can’t she stop thinking about the girl?"
Cool for the Summer is available on May 11.