The Recommended Reading Path: Where to Start?
Abdi Nazemian's novels are all standalones, meaning you can pick up any of his books in any order you choose without losing crucial plot connections. However, because his storytelling styles and target audiences differ across his bibliography, we recommend two distinct entry points depending on what you are looking for.
The Best YA Starting Point: Like a Love Story (2019)
If you want to experience Nazemian at the height of his emotional power, start with Like a Love Story. Set in New York City in 1989 at the peak of the AIDS crisis, this Stonewall Honor-winning novel follows three teenagers discovering love, art, and activism. It serves as an excellent introduction to Nazemian’s trademark themes: queer history, chosen family, and the intersection of Iranian culture and LGBTQ+ identity.
The Best Multigenerational Starting Point: Only This Beautiful Moment (2023)
For readers who appreciate sweeping, historical narratives and family secrets, Only This Beautiful Moment is the ideal first read. This novel spans three generations of Iranian men in 1939 Hollywood, 1978 Tehran, and 2019 Los Angeles. It won both the Lambda Literary Award and the Stonewall Book Award, showcasing how generational trauma and queer joy echo across decades.
Publication Order of Abdi Nazemian's Books
Reading Abdi Nazemian in publication order allows you to see his growth as a novelist, starting with his adult debut before transitioning into highly acclaimed young adult fiction.
1. The Walk-In Closet (2014)
Nazemian's debut novel is his only work written specifically for an adult audience. The story centers on Kara, a woman who agrees to pretend to be the girlfriend of her gay Persian best friend, Bobby, to satisfy his wealthy and conservative Los Angeles family. It won the Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Debut Fiction and blends sharp wit with a warm look at cultural expectations.
2. The Authentics (2017)
Marking Nazemian's transition into YA literature, this novel follows Daria Esfandyar, a proud Iranian-American teenager living in Los Angeles. When a school genealogy project reveals that she was adopted, her sense of self is shattered, prompting a heartfelt search for her biological roots and what it truly means to be "authentic."
3. Like a Love Story (2019)
This historical YA novel features Reza, a closeted Iranian teenager who has just moved to New York City; Art, the school's only openly gay student and a passionate activist; and Judy, Judy’s fashion-forward best friend. Through their relationships, the book honors the legacy of ACT UP and the resilience of the queer community during the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
4. The Chandler Legacies (2022)
Drawing on the author's own experience attending a Connecticut boarding school, this novel brings together five distinct students selected for an exclusive, private writing workshop at Chandler Academy in 1999. Through their writing, they find the courage to confront systemic abuse, hazing, and bigotry within their prestigious school.
5. Only This Beautiful Moment (2023)
A beautifully structured novel that alternates between three timelines. Bobby in 1939 tries to navigate the predatory nature of MGM-era Hollywood; Saeed in 1978 is sent to America by his parents to escape the brewing Iranian Revolution; and Moud in 2019 travels to Tehran to visit his dying grandfather, uncovering the invisible threads that tie his family's generations together.
6. Desert Echoes (2024)
A suspenseful YA novel written in a dual-timeline format. It tells the story of Kam, a teenager grappling with the mysterious disappearance of his first love, Ash, during a trip to Joshua Tree National Park two years prior. When Kam returns to the desert with his school's Gender and Sexualities Alliance (GSA), he must face the truth of his past trauma to move forward.
Anthologies and Short Stories
For readers who want to explore Nazemian's shorter fiction, he contributed to the young adult anthology Out There: Into the Queer New Yonder (2022). This collection of queer science fiction and fantasy stories offers a speculative departure from his usual realistic contemporary settings.
The Chronological Landscape: Timelines and Settings
Because Abdi Nazemian writes standalone contemporary and historical fiction, there is no official chronological reading order. However, history and setting play vital roles in his narratives. Here is how his stories map out chronologically based on their settings:
- 1939: The Hollywood timeline of Only This Beautiful Moment (Bobby's story).
- 1978: The pre-revolution Tehran timeline of Only This Beautiful Moment (Saeed's story).
- 1989: The NYC AIDS activism setting of Like a Love Story.
- 1999: The New England boarding school setting of The Chandler Legacies.
- 2014: The Los Angeles setting of The Walk-In Closet.
- 2017: The Los Angeles setting of The Authentics.
- 2019: The modern Los Angeles and Tehran timelines of Only This Beautiful Moment (Moud's story).
- 2022–2024: The dual-timeline events of Desert Echoes.
What to Know Before You Start
Before diving into Abdi Nazemian's catalog, keep the following reading advice in mind:
- Age Demographics: If you prefer adult fiction with satirical, glamorous, and social themes, start with The Walk-In Closet. If you prefer emotional, character-driven coming-of-age stories, stick to his YA titles.
- Heavy Themes: While his books are filled with love, hope, and humor, they address heavy topics. Like a Love Story deals directly with the grief and fear of the AIDS crisis. The Chandler Legacies contains depictions of hazing and institutional complicity in abuse. Desert Echoes handles grief, trauma, and parental drug addiction.
- Iranian-American Identity: Almost all of Nazemian's books feature Iranian-American protagonists, reflecting his own heritage. His stories offer a wonderful exploration of Iranian culture, food, language, and the realities of diaspora life.