How to Take a Risk

A heartfelt queer coming-of-age story about friendship, new siblings, and what it means to take a risk, perfect for fans of Almost Flying and Murray Out of Water.

The summer before seventh grade, adrenaline junkie Reagan is excited to be with her summer best friend, Zander, and cross every item off of their annual “Risk List,” a list of dares to complete across their coastal Maine town. She’ll get a break from her family friends Madi and Olive, and their new obsession with crushes and boys, and be able to focus on rock-jumping, hill-skateboarding, and camping out in the cemetery.

But when Zander asks Reagan to be his girlfriend, everything changes. What Reagan hoped would be a fun-filled summer like any other quickly becomes the most complicated of her life—especially when she realizes she doesn’t have a crush on Zander but on her friend Olive instead. 

How long can she pretend to be Zander’s girlfriend when she knows the truth of her feelings? And just when things can’t get any more tangled for Reagan, her mom tells her that she’s pregnant, with Reagan’s new baby sister scheduled to arrive at the end of summer. Suddenly, buried feelings come to the surface, and Reagan turns to increasingly scary dares to avoid the emotions bubbling up inside. 

But she can’t avoid these feelings forever. And maybe some changes are good. Maybe this summer is about discovering that the biggest risk of all is learning how to be herself.