Playing for Keeps

An American Library Association Rainbow Book List Selection

“This sweet romance is a home run.”—People

“Playing for Keeps is sapphic sports romance perfection. Swoony and romantic, but unafraid to tackle grief, family expectations, and fighting for your dreams, this is a home run of a book.”—Rachael Lippincott, coauthor of the #1 New York Times bestsellers Five Feet Apart and She Gets the Girl

“Charming … Without sacrificing the banter or sincerity that make up this winning romance, Dugan skillfully crafts parallel story lines in which the weight of loss and pressure to succeed haunt the protagonists throughout their everyday lives as they work toward their own futures.”—Publishers Weekly

“A satisfying queer sports romance, deepened by the emotional complexity of bigger topics … Breathtakingly real.”—School Library Journal

”[A] voice-driven, absorbing dual narrative … Ivy’s and June’s flawed coping strategies clash with their adorable budding romance, propelling them toward gut-wrenching heartbreak and terrifying, necessary, affirming new choices … A page-turner that handles heavy topics with wisdom.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Baseball and forbidden love—what more could you want in a YA romance novel?”—Brightly

Jennifer Dugan is a writer, a geek, and a romantic who writes the kinds of stories she wishes she’d had growing up. She’s the author of the graphic novel Coven, as well as the young adult novels Playing For Keeps, The Last Girls Standing, Melt With You, Some Girls Do, Verona Comics, and Hot Dog Girl. Hot Dog Girl was called “a great, fizzy rom-com” by Entertainment Weekly and “one of the best reads of the year, hands down” by Paste magazine. She lives in upstate New York with her family, their dog, a strange kitten who enjoys wearing sweaters, and an evil cat who is no doubt planning to take over the world.

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