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A gay middle schooler hoping to become a YouTube sensation falls in love while taking a stand against censorship.

Seth has only two weeks before summer vacation begins, but a final book report inadvertently makes this last fortnight stressful. The only other queer kid in class, activist Pluto Morrow, challenges Seth to read Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper. Reading it, Seth is moved—and inspired to work with Pluto to create a Pride display in their school library to draw attention to other LGBTQ+ books that are “hiding in plain sight.” The display is a hit, but then their bigoted classmate Rebecca checks out all the books with the intention of keeping them away from her classmates until they can be officially removed. Correia takes some big swings, some of which result in home runs while others are misses. The dialogue and romantic tension between Seth and Pluto feel stilted at times, but the author offers a realistic depiction of the flawed systems and biased authority figures that allow censorship to take root. The conclusion leaves many of the subplots unresolved, but in ways that ring true. Readers open to narratives that don’t wrap up with neatly packaged endings will find that this tale sparks meaningful conversations with caregivers, friends, and educators about the long-reaching harmful effects of censorship. Physical descriptors are minimal.

An authentically messy coming-of-age tale.