Brighter Than the Moon

Ages 12 And Up

From the author of Spin Me Right Round, a heartfelt, compelling story of figuring out and expressing your true self in life and love.

Jonas, shy foster kid, and Shani, self-assured vlogger, met online, sharing memes and baring their souls from behind their screens. Shani’s eager to meet, but Jonas isn't so confident she’ll like the real him… if he even knows who that is. Jonas knows he's trapped himself in a lie with Shani—and wants to dig himself out. But Shani, who’s been burned before, may not give him a chance: she talks her best friend Ash into playing spy and finding out the truth. But when Ash falls for Jonas, too, soon they’re all keeping secrets. Will it matter that their hearts are in the right place?

Through three memorable characters and their intersectional identities, David Valdes offers a thought-provoking story about love, labels, and figuring out who to be in the world, for fans of David Levithan and Adam Silvera.

About the Author

David Valdes is the author of Spin Me Right Round, a New York Public Library Best Book for Teens, and the nonfiction books Homo Domesticus, The Rhinestone Sisterhood, and Today Show pick A Little Fruitcake, as well as a dozen produced plays. A former Boston Globe columnist and Huffington Post blogger whose posts have received over a million hits, he was recently featured in the New York Times’s Modern Love column. He also teaches writing at Boston Conservatory and Tufts. David lives in the Boston area with his daughter. davidvaldeswrites.com • Twitter: @dvaldestweets • Instagram: @davidvaldeswrites • Facebook: davidvaldeswriter