Adib Khorram’s debut novel, Darius the Great Is Not Okay, really took the book world by storm. Winning the Morris Award, earning 3 starred reviews, and being named to 11 state award lists and counting, people adore this book!

Well the Penguin Classroom staff is among those who love Darius, and I’m here today to tell you how you’ll love the sequel, Darius the Great Deserves Better, even more. 

If you think about Darius’s first journey, it’s very much a story of Darius finding his place within his Persian identity and dealing with his mental health and the stigma he’s internalized about it. In his second story, Darius is a little older, a little wiser, and a little more confident. He’s in his junior year of high school and he has his depression under control, the best internship he could ask for, a spot on the varsity men’s soccer team at school, and A BOYFRIEND! Things seem to be going really well for Darius, but he wonders if maybe he deserves better. 

In Darius the Great Deserves Better, Darius goes on a journey to find his place in the queer community, helped along by his  queer and slightly standoffish grandparents. He figures out what his romantic boundaries are (while reading the book I just wanted to keep yelling “it’s okay that you’re not ready for more than make out sessions, Darius!!!”). He finds himself in the middle of an unexpected LOVE TRIANGLE. He worries about mental health – not just his, but that of his father. He deals with the grief of his grandfather dying. He has both a great and terrible year and does his best to weather the ups and downs. He learns that he does deserve better. He deserves the best.