Linus and Etta Could Use a Win

Following a move from New York, Linus is thrilled that he can start eighth grade in Ohio without having to come out as transgender (“I’m ready to just be a boy”), though he still struggles with his grandmother constantly misgendering him. Meanwhile Etta, reeling from a sudden friendship break up with popular Marigold, copes by “turning into a block of ice” and dreams about starting over at an alternative high school. A hallway collision leads to the pair becoming fast friends, with Etta’s defensive prickliness no match for Linus’s punny “golden retriever” personality. When Marigold asserts that Etta can’t get Linus elected as student council president, Etta takes the bet despite her fears that it will derail her and Linus’s blossoming friendship. Via alternating perspectives rendered in distinctive voices, Huntoon (Skating on Mars) thoughtfully cultivates subplots that expand upon the characters’ rich interiority: Etta worries that her unapproachable “anti-everything” persona is an excuse for loneliness, while Linus grapples with his anger when his parents won’t correct his grandmother’s insensitive use of his deadname and incorrect pronouns, making for a zippy and heartfelt tale of friendship and connection. Main characters cue as white. Ages 8–12. Agent: Jessica Mileo, Inkwell Management. (May)