Nic Stone is an Atlanta native and after working extensively in teen mentoring and living in Israel for several years, she returned to the United States to write full-time. Her debut novel for young adults, Dear Martin, was a New York Times bestseller. She is also the author of the teen titles Odd One Out, and Jackpot, a love-ish story that takes a searing look at economic inequality. In Dear Justyce (Crown Books for Young Readers), the sequel to Dear Martin, incarcerated teen Vernell LaQuan “Quan” Banks, writes letters to his friend Justyce McAllister about his experiences in the American juvenile justice system. Quan and Justyce grew up a block apart in the Southwest Atlanta neighborhood of Wynwood Heights. Years later, though, Justyce walks the halls of Yale University while Quan sits behind bars at the Fulton Regional Youth Detention Center. Through a series of flashbacks, vignettes, and letters to Justyce — the protagonist of Dear Martin — Quan’s story takes form. Troubles at home and misunderstandings at school give rise to police encounters and tough decisions. But then there’s a dead cop and a weapon with Quan’s prints on it. What leads a bright kid down a road to a murder charge? Not even Quan is sure. Booklist, in a starred review, called Dear Justyce “An unforgettable tour de force of social-justice and activist literature.”