The Throwback List

Anderson makes her adult debut (after the YA novel Not Now, Not Ever) with this stimulating story of a Black woman who ticks off a checklist from her teens and documents the results on Instagram. After Jo Freeman, 26, loses her marketing job in California, she grudgingly moves back in with her parents in small town Sandy Point, Ore. There, she reconnects with her former best friend, Autumn, who is white, and befriends Autumn’s new bestie, Bee Boria, with whom Jo had competed in high school. The three collaborate on Jo’s project, which involves adventures such as performing karaoke and getting a body piercing. Autumn, now a high school drama teacher, is in a power struggle with the chorus teacher. Bee runs her family’s tattoo shop and bends over backwards for her demanding Puerto Rican grandmother. Jo rekindles an old romance with hip, snobby Wren Vos, and flirts with Autumn’s older brother, Flo. Anderson transcends the chick-lit trope of ancient teen rivalries by crafting strong characters, and she also does a good job with the nuances of the women’s racial and sexual identities. Scenes with arguments, such as one between Jo and Wren over Jo’s priorities, are particularly riveting for showing the truth of both sides. There’s a lot to enjoy in this thoughtful story of female friendship. (Oct.)