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by Shideh Etaat
This lyrical coming-of-age novel for fans of Darius the Great Is Not Okay and On the Come Up, set in southern California in 1996, follows a teen who wants to honor her deceased friend's legacy by entering a rap contest.
Perfect Iranian girls are straight A students, always polite, and grow up to marry respectable Iranian boys. But it's the San Fernando Valley in 1996, and Rana Joon is far from perfect—she smokes weed and loves Tupac, and she has a secret: she likes girls.
As if that weren't enough, her best friend, Louie—the one who knew her secret and encouraged her to live in the moment—died almost a year ago, and she's still having trouble processing her grief. To honor him, Rana enters the rap battle he dreamed of competing in, even though she's terrified of public speaking.
But the clock is ticking. With the battle getting closer every day, she can't decide whether to use one of Louie's pieces or her own poetry, her family is coming apart, and she might even be falling in love. To get herself to the stage and fulfill her promise before her senior year ends, Rana will have to learn to speak her truth and live in the one and only now.
"A vivacious debut [with] a nostalgic vibe and the effervescent air of a summer block party, expertly complementing the heady seasonal California setting. Through Rana's magnetic POV and striking poetry, Etaat conveys Rana's anger, desire, and grief, making for a lively and thought-provoking exploration of self-love and self-discovery." ―Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Rana is an engaging lead with a satisfying journey of self-growth.... [a] lyrical read." ―Kirkus Reviews
"Rarely do we see a main character as real, tough, and refreshingly honest as Rana Joon. As she navigates life after the loss of her best friend, Rana discovers how grief, the pull of first love, and the importance of being true to oneself are all entwined and inevitable in the messy but glorious orbs of our lives. A moving and heartfelt debut." —Marjan Kamali, author of The Stationery Shop and Together Tea
"Achingly beautiful and devastatingly funny. Rana Joon is the big sister I wish I'd had growing up. Required reading for every Iranian-American teen." —Olivia Abtahi, award-winning author of Perfectly Parvin and Azar on Fire
This information about Rana Joon and the One and Only Now was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Shideh Etaat is an Iranian American writer living in Los Angeles. She received her MFA in creative writing from San Francisco State University. Her work has been published in Tremors: New Fiction by Iranian American Writers, Day One, Foglifter, Nowruz Journal, and My Shadow Is My Skin: Voices from the Iranian Diaspora. Shideh is also the author of Rana Joon and the One and Only Now. When she isn't busy writing, you can find her helping her four-year-old son navigate life.
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