Author Description

<b>Winner of the Golden Poppy Martin Cruz Smith Award for Emerging Diverse Voices <p> In this "tender and open-hearted novel," (Nina LaCour, author of <i>Yerba Buena</i>) Tomas Moniz--a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway and Lambda Literary awards--delivers a commanding new story about the power of friendship, community, and the families we create for ourselves.</b> <p> Efren "Chino" Flores has just moved back to the Bay Area from Seattle, jumping from sublet to sublet. In Washington, he was an adored middle school biology teacher with a loving wife, and a child on the way--that is, until a stunning loss upended his life. Now he's working temp jobs, terrified of commitment, and struggling to put himself back out into the world. <p> But there to nurture Chino is a coterie of new and old friends and lovers who form a protective web around him. Closest to him are Metal Matt, a red-haired metalhead with a soft spot for Courtney Love and a rangy dog named Sabbath, and Mike and Kay, a couple whose literary edge is matched only by the success of their secret OnlyFans account. As Chino begins to date more men and women--and to open himself up again to love--his bonds with those around him grow both rich and profound. Like a fern blooming in the wake of a forest fire, new life comes after even the most devastating upheaval. <p> With gorgeous, heartrending detail and a seemingly infinite catalogue of tender, unexpected interactions, Tomas Moniz has created a striking mosaic of desire and belonging. An anthem to both queer and platonic love, <i>All Friends Are Necessary</i> evinces the wonder of friendship and the joy of giving yourself up to the essential force of community. <p><b>"Vibrant, alive, and absolutely devastating in its beauty, <i>All Friends Are Necessary</i> is like a late-night phone call with your best friend--exuberant, confessional, and above all, honest."--Chelsea Bieker, author of <i>Godshot</i> and <i>Madwoman</i></b>