Guava and Grudges

July 8, 2024
While on a college tour in L.A., 17-year-old Cuban American Ana Maria Ybarra meets fellow foodie and amateur photographer Miguel Fuentes. She’s shocked to run into him again when she returns to her hometown of Port Murphy, Wash. But their budding friendship is immediately waylaid by the fact that Miguel is related to the Morales family, the owners of Ana’s family’s rival bakery. Though Ana has dreams of attending pastry school in Paris, her family’s business is struggling, and she knows her parents can’t afford to send her. So she endeavors to win a culinary scholarship and works to develop a recipe for an upcoming contest. Lacking the skills (and funds) to produce professional-looking photos of her creations, she turns to Miguel, but their partnership must remain secret or else Ana’s father will be outraged. When she starts developing feelings for Miguel, however, things get even more complicated. Graphic novelist Castellanos (Isla to Island) gives the family feud trope a sweet twist in her fiction debut, which sensitively explores topics such as Latinx identity, teenage drinking, financial instability, and finding the courage to advocate for oneself. Ages 12–up. Agent: Marietta B. Zacker, Gallt & Zacker Literary.