My Dad is Dead: and Other Funny Storiesby George Verongos

Death. It’s a part of life and something we all must accept. Whether it be our own demise or losing a loved one, the experience of death is both sobering and surreal. My Dad is Dead is a group of related short stories that explore that dichotomy through the eyes of a kid. In George Verongos’s second book, he turns childhood memories into “fictionally enhanced” tales (he made us say that, he’s trying to make it a thing). With one foot in memoir and the other in fiction, My Dad is Dead recounts the experiences of the author as a young boy (I always wanted to say that) growing up as the last of four children, and the only boy, to Greek-American parents. Set in the Midwest, the breadbasket of America, during the 70s and 80s, My Dad Is Dead takes you on a journey of preadolescence and all its trials and tribulations culminating in the sudden death of the author’s father. If you like your accents thick, your humor dark, and your tears jerked(?), My Dad is Dead and Other Funny Stories is for you.

Obviously: Stories from My Timelineby Akilah Hughes

"A refreshingly funny and blisteringly unsentimental coming-of-age memoir." –John Green, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Turtles All The Way Down and The Fault in Our Stars

In Akilah Hughes's world, family–and life–are often complicated, but always funny. Through intimate and hilarious essays, Akilah takes readers along on her journey from the small Kentucky town where she was born–and eventually became a spelling bee champ and 15-year-old high school graduate–to New York City, where she took careful steps to fulfill her dream of becoming a writer and performer. Like Tiffany Haddish's The Last Black Unicorn or Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? for the YA set, Akilah pens revealing and laugh-out-loud funny essays about her life, covering everything from her racist fifth grade teacher, her struggles with weight and acne, her failed attempts at joining the cheerleading team, how to literally get to New York (hint: for a girl on a budget, it may include multiple bus transfers) and exactly how to "make it" once you finally get there.

The Light of the Firefliesby Paul Pen

From bestselling Spanish author Paul Pen comes a haunting and hopeful tale of discovering light in even the darkest of places.

For his whole life, the boy has lived underground, in a basement with his parents, grandmother, sister, and brother. Before he was born, his family was disfigured by a fire. His sister wears a white mask to cover her burns.

He spends his hours with his cactus, reading his book on insects, or touching the one ray of sunlight that filters in through a crack in the ceiling. Ever since his sister had a baby, everyone’s been acting very strangely. The boy begins to wonder why they never say who the father is, about what happened before his own birth, about why they’re shut away.

A few days ago, some fireflies arrived in the basement. His grandma said, There’s no creature more amazing than one that can make its own light. That light makes the boy want to escape, to know the outside world. Problem is, all the doors are locked. And he doesn’t know how to get out…

My Second Chance Secret Babyby C. Morgan

It’s no secret that every woman wants me.

Charming, wealthy, and I have an empire for my legacy.

Unfortunately for most, I’m not the family kind of man.

You might call me a lone wolf. The guy who stands alone and loves it.

Late nights, good booze, and a hot woman on my arm are all I’m after.

Until a hot number from my past resurfaces.

She used to be the one I dreamt of growing old with, back when I wasted my time on hope, dreams, and the lies they offer.

Crazy enough, the chemistry between us is off the charts.

It’s been a long time since a woman has left my heart racing, my hands sweaty, and my body aching for a simple touch.

So I do what any gentleman might do to get around a lady he’s interested in–I offer her a job.

But something’s off. She’s got a little girl, and the angel looks a little too much like my side of the family.

Surely not.

I’m not looking for a long-term relationship, just a rekindling between the sheets.

Or so I tell myself. When the nagging truth is that maybe this is my second chance with the only girl I’ve ever loved.

Not sure if fate is offering me a dream or a nightmare, but either way, I’m taking it.

This woman is mine.