Something to Be Proud of (a Novel)

An inspiring, hilarious YA debut packed full of fun, forever friendships, and fighting back, perfect for fans of Alice Oseman and Casey McQuiston.

Imogen Quinn is pissed off. She's having a sensory-overload panic attack at her first Pride parade, and her friends ditched her. Fabulous.

But Imogen isn't the kind of girl to stay knocked down, so she ditches her bad friends and decides to start an activist club to fight for a school where everyone can feel welcome--and that includes putting on a Pride celebration that's accessible for autistic people like her. The problem? She has no friends, no support, and no money, and her small-minded principal hates her guts.

Enter Ollie Armstrong. The openly gay, unexpectedly kind captain of the football team is everything Imogen is not. He's popular, he's respected . . . but he's also completely miserable. His parents' divorce is secretly eating him alive, and he has no real friends to talk to. So when Imogen ambushes him with a plan to fight against everyone who is pissing her off and a plea for his help, Ollie is too in his own head to think of an excuse.

With Ollie on board, it doesn't take long before they are joined by the infuriatingly perfect head girl and a delightful crew of classmates who have their own axes to grind. But it's Ollie and Imogen leading the charge and opening up to each other in ways they never imagined possible.

Inspired by this unlikely friendship, Ollie is on the hunt for answers about his parents' divorce and his own feelings about gender. And Imogen is empowered to stand up for herself and stop taking anyone's shit.

Between protests at city hall, confrontations at an open mic, a suspension, and the best drag football charity game ever played, it's clear Imogen and Ollie aren't ones to back away from a fight. Especially not when it's for the people they love or the world they want to live in.

Fierce and funny, Anna Zoe Quirke's Something to Be Proud Of is about advocating for yourself and finding the people who care about you.

Published in partnership with media advocacy organization GLAAD, this empowering book positively represents LGBTQ teens.

"For anyone who loves witty banter, unforgettable characters, and vocal -LGBTQIA+ pride, this is a delight." - School Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW

"Accessible queer joy." - Kirkus

Author: Anna Zoe Quirke
Publisher: Yellow Jacket
Published: 04/07/2026
Pages: 336
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.05lbs
Size: 8.50h x 6.00w x 1.10d
ISBN: 9781499818291
Audience: Young Adult


Review Citation(s):
School Library Journal 01/01/2026 pg. 51

About the Author
Anna Zoe Quirke is a queer and autistic author. They live in Manchester with their wife and very angry tortoise where they also work as a children's librarian and write about mental health, neurodivergence, and LGBTQ+ issues. Their novel Something to be Proud Of won the Northern Writers' Award for Debut YA Fiction in 2022 and was published with Little Tiger in the UK in June 2024, after which it was nominated for a Carnegie Award in 2025.

They're at their happiest writing stories about chaotic queer and disabled people finding love and claiming their place in the world, but they also enjoy exploring beautiful places, crafting, cooking, and generally being a nerd about books and art/fashion history.