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“Ros Demir, 16, can dive into a cold lake in the dark on a dare but lacks the confidence to ask Lydia, her best friend since childhood, why she spread the nasty falsehood at summer camp that froze their relationship two years ago. …Ros just wants to get ahead in this stuffy community, until newcomer Aydin Muhtar makes her question why. He embraces his Turkish identity with a love of its cuisine and a facility for its language, while she’s less secure in her own heritage, which is a mix of Scottish and Turkish. …Friendship and misunderstanding go hand in hand in this layered character study of a teen who longs to be accepted.”

– School Library Journal

Ros Demir Is Not the One

Written by Leyla Brittan
Published by Holiday House

Ros will do whatever it takes to get the guy. At least… she thinks she will.

Sixteen-year-old Ros is a go-getter. When she wants something, she makes sure she gets it.

But a lingering rumor (and maybe some ambivalence about her half-Turkish heritage) has kept Ros from achieving the kind of reputation she deserves. So, after years of plotting her big comeback, she just needs one thing: a hot, adoring guy on her arm at junior year homecoming. And when she meets charming new classmate Aydın at the Pine Bay resort over the summer, she thinks she’s found The One.

It doesn’t work, though. And things get messy when Ros’s plan ends up hurting the only friend she has left… poor, sweet, forgiving Eleanor. This has happened before—things tend to get messy with Ros around—and it’s getting harder for her to ignore the pattern of hurt feelings. Plus, it seems like Ros and Aydın aren’t really meant to be. What kind of a plan results in everyone ending up unhappy? Not a very good one.

A not-quite rom com starring a bold, outspoken antiheroine, this Turkish-American Romeo and Juliet remix is refreshingly snarky. Witty, whip-smart dialogue plays with the complexities of multicultural identity and female friendships, from Ros’s very first screw-up to her unconventional happy ending. 

Primary ISBN: 9780823457137
Publication Date: October 2024
Available As: Hardcover, Paperback, eBook
Young Adult, Age 12 or older

Community Represented:

Themes: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Setting: United States (Connecticut), United States (Maine)

Character's Place in the Immigration Journey: Unknown Arrival

Book Creator(s) Connection to the Community Represented: Own Voices/Lived Experience

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