High school junior Leila's Persian heritage already makes her different from her classmates at Armstead Academy, and if word got out that she liked girls life would be twice as hard, but when a new girl, Saskia, shows up, Leila starts to take risks she never thought she would, especially when it looks as if the attraction between them is mutual, so she struggles to sort out her growing feelings by confiding in her old friends.

It's 2002, a year after 9/11. It's an extremely turbulent time politically, but especially so for someone like Shirin, a sixteen-year-old Muslim girl who's tired of being stereotyped. Shirin is never surprised by how horrible people can be. She's tired of the rude stares, the degrading comments--even the physical violence--she endures as a result of her race, her religion, and the hijab she wears every day. So she's built up protective walls and refuses...

"2019. Moud is an out gay teen living in Los Angeles with his distant father, Saeed. When Moud gets the news that his grandfather in Iran is dying, he accompanies his dad to Tehran, where the revelation of family secrets will force Moud into a new understanding of his history, his culture, and himself. 1978. Saeed is an engineering student with a promising future ahead of him in Tehran. But when his parents discover his involvement in the country's...

Clinically-depressed Darius Kellner, a high school sophomore, travels to Iran to meet his grandparents, but it is their next-door neighbor, Sohrab, who changes his life. "Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi, and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than Persian ones. He's a Fractional Persian -- half, his mom's side -- and his first ever trip to Iran is about to change his life. Darius has never really fit in at home, and he's sure...

After lying on her college admissions, seventeen-year-old Jasmine needs to win her senior class election, but the Iran Hostage Crisis explodes across the nightly news and her opponent begins to stir up anti-Iranian hysteria at school causing Jasmine to reconcile with her identity in way she never has before. 1979. Jasmine Zumideh is ready to leave Southern California and into her dream school, NYU. There's only one teensy problem: on the application,...

"Fourteen-year-old Azar Rossi sets out to find her voice and win her local Battle of the Bands contest"-- After a bad case of colic as a baby, Azar's vocal folds give her a rasp the envy of a chain-smoking bullfrog. Her classmates might just think she's quiet, but Azar is saving her voice for when it really counts-- talking to her classmates is not high on her list. A local Battle of the Bands contest is something she can't resist. Azar loves music,...

"Eleven-year-old Zomorod, originally from Iran, tells her story of growing up Iranian in Southern California during the Iranian Revolution and hostage crisis of the late 1970s"--

"Eighteen-year-olds Cori and Maz, once inseparable best friends, reunite to solve the mystery of what happened to their other friend Sam--who disappeared five years ago and has now returned, not having aged at all"-- Growing up, Cori, Maz, and Sam were inseparable best friends, sharing their love for Halloween, arcade games, and one another. Now it's 1992, Sam has been missing for five years, and Cori and Maz aren't speaking anymore. How could they...

Set in 1996 southern California, high school senior Rana Joon wants to honor her deceased best friend by entering a rap contest and living authentically as a lesbian, but feels conflicted by her Iranian family's expectations.

"A young immigrant girl joins her aunt and uncle in a new country that is unfamiliar to her. She struggles with loneliness, with a fierce longing for the culture and familiarity of home, until one day, her aunt takes her on a walk. As the duo strolls through their city park, the girl's aunt begins to tell her an old myth, and a story within the story begins. A long time ago, a group of refugees arrived on a foreign shore. The local king met them,...