Praise for These Bodies Between Us

December-March 2023

Kirkus Reviews called These Bodies Between Us “an original and worthwhile journey…a suspenseful story of friendship and magic,” and Publishers Weekly said it is an “eloquent, sometimes heartbreaking character study” with “luminous language.” Booklist said that the book “has precisely the right blend of haunting fantastical elements and down-to-earth realism as Van Name explores body dysmorphia, male-gaze culture, queerness in the South, and the unbreakable bond of teenage friendships.” I’m grateful for the kind words.

These Bodies Between Us cover reveal

My third book, These Bodies Between Us has a cover (!!!) and a release date (!) of March 12, 2024. As of today, you can pre-order it from any of the usual suspects. I am obsessed with this cover; I think it is so beautiful, and I am so grateful for the work of Hokyoung Kim in illustrating it and Trisha Previte at Delacorte in designing it. I can’t wait to see it in person. And perhaps it’s vain to say, but I really do think that if you like the cover, you’ll like the book.

The Goodbye Summer translated into Spanish

The Goodbye Summer is now available in Spanish! Its new title is Un Verano Para Olvidarte, which, if Google and my very poor Spanish are correct, translates to A Summer to Forget You. I love the title, and it’s amazing to see a book I wrote translated. You can buy it on Amazon or order it from your local bookstore.

Virtual event, May 15: So you want to write YA contemporaries?

On May 15, I’m thrilled to be participating in an event with three other Spring 2021 Sourcebooks Fire authors:

• K.L. Walther (author of If We Were Us and The Summer of Broken Rules)

• Robin Reul (author of My Kind of Crazy and Where the Road Leads Us)

• Suzanne Park (author of The Perfect Escape and Sunny Song Will Never Be Famous)

With Melanie Diaz moderating, we’ll be discussing our favorite writing tips for YA contemporary books and answering audience questions. Tickets are free and include entry into the Zoom, a $10 voucher toward books by any of the participating authors, and a chance to enter a giveaway for all our 2021 books. It’ll be a ton of fun. Register here.

School Library Journal reviews Any Place But Here

School Library Journal gave Any Place But Here a very kind review, saying: “This novel does a good job of illustrating complex teen emotions, especially the precariousness of growing up and wanting to fit in despite not yet being sure where you belong… Fans of Julie Murphy’s Ramona Blue and Nina LaCour’s We Are Okay will enjoy this introspective, emotional novel.”

Read the full review in the May issue of School Library Journal.

Kirkus reviews Any Place But Here

Kirkus gave Any Place But Here a lovely review:

“Contemplative yet matter-of-fact prose chronicles the development of June’s sense of self, grounded by photography assignments that literally and figuratively offer opportunities to see the things—and people—in her life in new ways. June’s complicated feelings for Jess—and subsequent questioning of her sexuality before coming out as bisexual—are compassionately and authentically written, as are her tense exchanges with her parents…An atmospheric meditation on connection and identity.”

You can read the whole review on their site.

Blogging at Book Harvest

In February 2021, I wrote a guest post on the Book Harvest blog on the importance of YA literature coming from diverse voices and featuring diverse characters. Book Harvest provides books and literary support to kids and families in Durham, and they can always use support. Find out how you can help them.

Cover reveal: Any Place But Here

I’m thrilled to announce that my second book, Any Place But Here, will be released from Sourcebooks Fire in May 2021. You can see the (truly wonderful) cover on the Sourcebooks Fire blog.

The Goodbye Summer is a Junior Library Guild pick!

The Junior Library Guild (JLG) has selected The Goodbye Summer for inclusion in its Paperbacks High grouping in 2019. I’m thrilled to have it shipping in June to schools and libraries around the country.