A FURRY FAUX PAW

High school senior Maeve Stephens is a furry. She’s not a full-on fursuiter, but wearing her cat ears is one of the few things that makes her happy.

Maeve’s MauveCat fursona helps her cope with her parents’ divorce and her mother’s extreme hoarding. While she doesn’t have many real-life friends, she has a strong and loyal online following. Maeve has her eye on a prestigious art school in Portland, Oregon, so when her father offers to pay for Furlympia, a local furry con, Maeve jumps at the chance to meet her online art mentor and idol, Sunspire, who might be able to help her snag a scholarship to her dream school. But when Maeve’s mother refuses to let her attend Furlympia, Maeve decides to go anyway. While there, Maeve keeps her new friends at arm’s length while she battles with separating her home and furry lives. Luckily her community is persistent in showing her support. This is an uplifting story of finding oneself despite the pull of a loved one’s severe mental illness: Maeve navigates her emotions and relationships in a positive way, keeping readers rooting for her success and happiness. The timeline is sometimes fuzzy, but the nerdy sweetness will keep both furry and nonfurry readers turning pages. Maeve, who is questioning whether she is asexual, is cued as White; there is some diversity among supporting characters.

An endearing story about coping with struggles and finding your chosen family.