An active shooter drill gone wrong compels two middle schoolers to face their fears in very different ways. After being diagnosed with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a progressive disease that causes her joints to dislocate and currently prevents her from drumming or riding her dirt bike, Avery Hart is terrified of losing her independence, but others' ignorant comments have led her to mask her fear and pain. So when a realistic active shooter drill traumatizes her classmates and compounds her sense of helplessness, Avery plots a dangerous act of revenge against the principal. In the meantime, her crush on classmate Sarah grows. Sarah Bell knows about fear; she experiences terrible panic attacks, which her Catholic parents insist prayer will cure. In her journal, illustrated with her sketches and Spirograph designs, Sarah reflects on her hectic family, anxiety, prayer, and her growing attraction to Avery as she ponders how to help her classmates heal. Can she help Avery before she carries out her plan? The girls' distinct alternating voices vividly immerse readers in their turbulent emotions. Machias incorporates a variety of tough issues, including class disparities, Covid-19, political divides, racism, and ableism. The effect is occasionally overwhelming--much like real life--but ultimately hopeful. Readers will also appreciate Sarah's strategies for calming. One of pansexual Avery's moms is trans, and Avery's best friend, who has ADHD, is Black. Avery and Sarah are White. Honest and timely. (Fiction. 10-13) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Machias (Both Can Be True, 2021) weaves identities with nuance and complexity in their latest, in which Avery, who is living with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and Sarah, who struggles with anxiety, begin a friendship--and maybe something more--in the wake of a school-shooting drill taken too far. While Avery leans into her tendency to fight, Sarah focuses on prayer as they both attempt to manage their personal challenges and their shared distress over the drill. In addition to deftly navigating Sarah's mental health struggles and Avery's physical disability, Machias thoughtfully portrays characters who are cis and trans, gay and straight, and from different religious and racial backgrounds. They also employ a clever metaphorical device in the book's accompanying illustrations, which show Sarah's growth, in particular, through her journal and art. Excellent, if slightly lengthy, this is a recommendation for readers who enjoyed Sharon Draper's Out of My Mind (2010).

Machias's (Both Can Be True) arresting novel, told in alternating narratives, features white 13-year-olds Avery Hart and Sarah Bell finding strength in each other amid an active shooter drill. Pansexual Avery loves drumming and riding her dirt bike, but the chronic pain from her hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome limits her mobility, leaving her feeling out of control of her life. Sarah is an artist who draws to manage her panic attacks, though her parents insist that prayer is all she needs. When Maple Creek Middle School's principal fabricates an active shooter situation, leaving students shaken, Avery swears vengeance against the administration. As infatuation blooms between the girls and Avery's plan becomes perilous, Sarah resolves to overcome her own anxieties and help her traumatized classmates. The girls' voices are distinct, and Avery's righteous anger complements Sarah's calm, reserved introspection, balancing the heavy subject matter with levity. This affecting story empathetically explores challenges of living with chronic pain and anxiety, offering hope and moments of hard-won joy. Sarah's intricate line drawings illustrate the chapters she narrates via her journal. Supporting characters include BIPOC and queer representation. Ages 10--up. Agent: John Cusick, Folio Literary Management. (May)

Gr 5 Up--Everyone has something going on, and some more than others. Athletic Avery has hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a painful chronic condition that affects her joints. Sarah has anxiety and experiences panic attacks that she tries to manage by creating art. They both feel as if they are losing control, Avery of her body and Sarah of her mind. The alternating perspectives of these two well-developed characters allow readers realistic glimpses into the teenage mind. Avery is pansexual, has two moms (one who is trans), is going through physical therapy for a shoulder injury that keeps her from riding the bike that she loves, and has a bullied and biracial best friend with ADHD named Mason. Sarah is struggling in her core classes, carries heavy family obligations (having to care for her younger siblings), has an aunt who recently died causing her cousin/best friend to have to move away, and has a gay brother in a Catholic family. Avery and Sarah are brought together by an active shooter drill that the school administration run as if it were real. As a lovely friendship builds, deeper feelings develop and Sarah begins to question her religious upbringing. This is a unique, fast-paced novel with a lot going on and a lot to appreciate. However, it should come with some trigger warnings: chronic and mental illness, school shootings, homophobia, transphobia, racism, bullying, death and loss, to name a few. VERDICT A solid, character-driven choice for libraries that tackles tough topics with skill and nuance.--Claire Covington