Pushed to the Brink: Navigating Friendship, Feelings, and Familial Expectations

Mental health and peer pressure, drugs and discrimination—the young protagonists of these engrossing tales grapple with high stakes challenges and situations. Sonora Reyes returns with The Golden Boy’s Guide to Bipolar, a raw and heartfelt story following Cesar Flores as he navigates coming out, bipolar disorder, and the difficult road toward healing. Meanwhile, Rex Ogle’s When We Ride delivers a gripping novel-in-verse featuring Diego Benevides, who risks his future in the name of friendship and ends up in a whirlwind of drug dealing and deadly reckonings. Together, Reyes and Ogle offer unflinching portraits of resilience and vulnerability in the face of deep personal challenges.