Daniel, Deconstructed
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
A nerdy high schooler learns to embrace his main-character energy in this witty and heart-healing ode to movie tropes, meet-cutes, and LGBTQ+ love.
Photographer and film buff Daniel Sanchez learned a long time ago that the only way to get by in an allistic world is to mask his autism and follow the script. Which means he knows that boisterous, buff, and beautiful soccer superstars like his best friend, Mona Sinclair, shouldn’t be wasting time hanging out with introverts who prefer being behind the camera.
So when Daniel meets a new classmate, Gabe Mendes, who is tall, mysterious, nonbinary, and — somehow — as cool as Mona, Daniel knows exactly how this is going to play out. Mona and Gabe will meet cute, win their nominations for Homecoming Court, and ride off into the sunset together. Daniel just needs to do a little behind-the-scenes directing.
But matchmaking means stepping into the mystifying and illogical world of love, dating, and relationships, where nothing is as it seems and no one knows their lines. And when Daniel finds himself playing a starring role in this romance, he’ll question everything he thought he knew about himself and his place in the world.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Autistic high school senior and photographer Daniel Sanchez is convinced that his introverted, geeky ways make him a poor friendship match for popular, bisexual soccer player Ramona "Mona" Sinclair. Though they've been friends since they were 12 and share a passion for old movies and Harrison Ford, he's convinced that, come graduation, she will leave him behind. That's fine with Daniel—he just wants her to be happy. When he meets charismatic Gabe, who is nonbinary, during a LARPing bout, he denies his instant attraction to them and instead focuses on matchmaking them with Mona. But no matter how hard Daniel tries, his growing relationship with Gabe keeps throwing a wrench in his plans. The cast's inherently kind and respectful actions as they strive toward maturity together is a bright spot throughout. Via Daniel's thoughtful examinations of neurodivergence, sexuality, and self-identity through photography ("The filter of a lens between myself and the rest of the world is comforting"), Ramos (The Wrong Kind of Weird), who is autistic and queer, infuses this realistic and relatable romp with raw emotion and affirming introspection. Daniel is Cuban American, Gabe is Black, and Mona has brown skin. Ages 13–up.
