Dasia (Forever)

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Dear Martin series comes a spin-off novel written in prose and letters-in-verse about a thirteen-year-old girl. As she navigates cancer, family challenges, and newfound friendship during her initial chemo treatment, she discovers that hope can bloom in the most unexpected places.

“Absolutely incredible—I read it in one sitting and finished in tears. Stone shows so much care and nuance here. Dasia will stay with me forever.” — Andrea Beatriz Arango, author of Newbery Honor book Iveliz Explains It All

“Unflinching, fearless, and strikingly original.” — Soman Chainani, author of the bestselling School for Good and Evil series and Young World

After nineteen days of “induction chemotherapy,” Dasia Monae Riley knows no one else should be in her hospital room…

But there she is: Jameson “Jimmy” Jeffs. Another cancer patient who’s seemingly everything Dasia is not: rich, well cared for, and a smidge childish (in Dasia’s opinion).

However, Dasia soon discovers that their commonalities go beyond a random, incurable disease… like older brothers who are gone, baby brothers who need them, and struggles with friends at school.

As Dasia and Jimmy chat, Dasia’s memories unfold in the unsent “letters” (read: poems) Dasia wrote to her incarcerated older brother. And over the course of one life-changing night, two girls who are at their lowest fight to keep each other uplifted. When you hit rock bottom, what does it take to survive and allow yourself to hope again?

In a spin-off to the Dear Martin series, Nic Stone delivers a heart-wrenching story of resilience, connection, and the fight to stay alive when battling illness and bearing the weight of difficult circumstances.