No, the “Z” in the title isn’t a typo; Cynthia So’s 2022 bi contemp UK YA, If You Still Recognize Me, is coming stateside via HarperTeen on May 23, 2023, and we’ve got your first look at the brand-new cover! But first, here’s the story:
This summer, Elsie is finally going to confess her feelings to her longtime—and long-distance—crush. Ada’s fanfics are to die for, and she just gets Elsie like no one else. That is, until Joan, Elsie’s childhood best friend, literally walks back into her life and slots in like she had never moved away to Hong Kong and never ignored Elsie’s dozens of emails and letters.
Then Ada mentions her grandmother’s own long-lost pen pal (and maybe love?), a woman who once lived only a train ride away from Elsie’s Oxford home, and Elsie gets the idea for the perfect grand gesture. But as her plan to reunite the two older women ignites a summer of repairing broken bonds, Elsie starts to wonder if she, too, can recover the things she’s lost…
With a beautifully earnest teen voice, a light epistolary element, and a dash of fandom, this wistful and delightful debut is a love letter to queer coming-of-age, finding community, and finding yourself.
And here’s the dreamy cover, designed by Julia Tyler with art by Karyn Lee!
Alt text: Cover image for If You Still Recognize Me by Cynthia So. Two East Asian girls are standing against a background of the sky at sunset. The girl in the foreground, with short hair and a bomber jacket, is looking toward the viewer, while in the background a second girl with long hair and a yellow sundress is looking at her.
Buy it: Bookshop | Amazon | IndieBound
Cynthia So was born in Hong Kong and lives in London. Their work has been published in speculative fiction magazines such as Uncanny, Strange Horizons, and Anathema. When they’re not writing, they can often be found at the theatre, entranced by a play or a musical. They’re also extremely enthusiastic about board games and tabletop role-playing. If You Still Recognize Me is their first novel.
