Description
Perfect for fans of Mason Deaver and Becky Albertalli, this tender, raucous novel follows a rule-following, perfectionist teen who starts an underground GSA club at her conservative Catholic high school, from the acclaimed author of Kings, Queens, and In-Betweens.
Cassie Perera is a star student in St. Luke's junior class. But the new school year brings an unwelcome surprise—the return to St. Luke's of Cassie's former friend, Ben, who left a few years ago after a homophobic bullying incident Cassie knows she didn't do enough to prevent.
Still harboring guilt from her inaction, Cassie decides, in her usual, overzealous way, to team up with the neighboring public school to found an underground Gender and Sexuality Alliance—as a complicated strategy for making things up to Ben. Secretly, Cassie is also tempted by the possibility of opening up about her own sexuality for the first time.
As Cassie’s new friends urge her out of her comfort zone, she unlocks a kind of joy and freedom she’s never felt before—even as she struggles to balance these experiences with her typical tightrope of being the perfect daughter, student, and Catholic.
Cassie’s perfectly curated life unravels into turmoil, but can she embrace the mess enough to piece together something new?
Author Bio
Tanya Boteju lives on unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations (Vancouver, BC). Part-time, she teaches English to clever, sassy young people. The rest of her time, she uses writing as an excuse to eat pastries. Her debut novel, Kings, Queens, and In-Betweens, was named a Top Ten Indie Next Pick by the American Booksellers Association. In both teaching and writing, Tanya looks to bend the universe even the tiniest bit toward justice.
Prizes
- White Pine Award Finalist
Review Quotes
“Complex, gorgeous, and true, Messy Perfect lives up to its name. I loved it.” — Elana K. Arnold, award-winning author of Damsel
"A very enjoyable novel that also conveys an important message: that no young person should have to choose between different parts of themselves and that, in the words of the main character, you should be able to be religious and queer and still be happy. This moving and heartwarming book is also a love letter to GSAs, by a writer who truly sees and understands the work so many students are doing to make their schools safer and more accepting for everyone." — Robin Stevenson, award-winning author of Queer History A–Z and Pride Puppy
"A sweet, emotional read affirming those who struggle to find a place within religions that profess to hate who they are." — Kirkus Reviews
"Boteju (Bruised) employs grounded and informative prose to deliver empathetic examinations of acceptance, guilt, and the pressure of meeting unrealistic expectations in this tenderly affirming novel." — Publishers Weekly
"Nuanced and sweet...Kids in this story want to create safe spaces, and this book certainly offers one to its readers as Cassie’s journey to accepting her messiness emphasizes that, religious or not, being queer is normal and okay." — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
"Artfully articulates the beauty of community...Boteju’s latest queer coming-of-age story offers a vulnerable look into the intersection of identity and religion." — School Library Journal
"Kindhearted and affecting...Messy Perfect is an inspiring and beautifully written coming-of-age novel." — Shelf Awareness
