Pasta Girls - by Taylor Tracy (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

In this queer, contemporary, and neurodiverse spin on Romeo and Juliet from Stonewall Award Honor author Taylor Tracy, two New York City girls from warring restaurateur families befriend each other during the busiest week for their respective Italian eateries: the Feast of San Gennaro.

Hot-headed and energetic Romea Marino is starting ninth grade with a full plate. Between confusing social dynamics of high school and juggling extracurriculars, Ro can only find peace in the reliable comfort of her kitchen, where she's able to follow in her dad's culinary footsteps, whipping up Italian-fusion recipes.

Thoughtful and reserved Julianna Cangelosi is dying to help in her family's restaurant, which serves traditional Italian dishes. But because Jules suffers from anxiety and struggles with overstimulation, her parents are wary of their daughter being in the chaos of a New York City kitchen.

When Ro and Jules meet on the first night of the San Gennaro Festival, sparks fly...until they learn that their fathers own dueling Italian restaurants across the street from each other. But the more the girls hang out--Ro teaching Jules how to cook; Jules taking Ro to her favorite spots around the city--the more their feelings grow. Can they rewrite the old tale of star-crossed kids from rival families and create a new recipe for love and friendship?

Review Quotes

"Pasta Girls is a fun and romantic ride about two neurodivergent lesbians discovering who they are and who they want to be. Tracy has written a Shakespeare retelling that centers her queer middle grade characters' needs within this age old story. A book perfect for any readers' shelf that will have you yearning to be kissed on a ferris wheel, eat all the pasta, and make plans for the next San Gennaro." -- Nicole Melleby, award-winning author of Winnie Nash is Not Your Sunshine

"Pasta Girls is the middle-grade Romeo and Juliet retelling of my dreams. This aptly constructed tale of pasta and woe is filled to the brim with heart, humor, and forbidden first love. Ro and Jules are as unforgettable as they are loveable and this Shakespearean tale of family, food, and friendship will stay with you long after you have closed the book." -- Nashe Jones, author of Courtesy of Cupid

"Pasta Girls is a feast: of first love, friendship, family, and finding your way. Readers will root for Ro and Jules as they refuse to settle for anything less than their dreams, even if they are still trying to figure out what shape those dreams will take. A beautiful middle grade love story." -- Kate Fussner, author of 13 Ways to Say Goodbye and The Song of Us

"With Pasta Girls, Taylor Tracy serves up a queer love story that is sweeter than zeppole and perfect for younger teens! Filled with mouth-watering descriptions of Italian food, adoring nonnas, and young, neurodiverse queer love--this book has something for everyone." -- Jake Maia Arlow, Stonewall Honor Author of Almost Flying

"As sweet as cannoli and as satisfying as homemade pesto on fresh, crusty bread, Pasta Girls is a delightfully un-tragic riff on Romeo and Juliet that centers two eminently relatable queer, neurodivergent young teens. Readers who crave upper middle grade stories about eighth and ninth grade characters will devour Taylor Tracy's ode to New York City, Italian food, and first love." -- Laurie Morrison, author of Up for Air and Keeping Pace

"Tracy retains some key characteristics of Shakespeare's story and inserts literary references, but this tragedy-free version is a feel-good romance. An inclusive, well-characterized reimagining of a classic." -- Kirkus Reviews