Aiden Thomas

Latino-American author

Aiden Thomas
Thomas in 2024
Nationality	American
Citizenship	United States of America
Alma mater	Mills College
Genre	Young adult fiction
Notable works	Cemetery Boys
Website
www.aiden-thomas.com

Aiden Thomas is a Latino American author of young adult novels, best known for the book Cemetery Boys which was a New York Times bestseller and won numerous awards, including best of the year recognition from the American Library Association, Publishers Weekly, Barnes &* Noble, NPR and School Library Journal.

Thomas is transgender and uses he/they pronouns. They advocate for diverse representation in media.

Personal life

Thomas was born in Oakland, California, and received a MFA in creative writing from Mills College.^[1] They live in Portland.^[2]

Books

Cemetery Boys

Cemetery Boys was published on September 1, 2020, by Swoon Reads and tells the story of Yadriel, who is queer, transgender, Latino and a brujo. Unfortunately, his family does not recognize him as a man, which has serious effects on his abilities.

The book was named a best seller by The New York Times and IndieBound,^[3] and received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly^[4] and Booklist.^[5]

Cemetery Boys has received the following accolades:

Bram Stoker Award for Best Young Adult Novel nominee (2020)^[6]
Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction (2020)^[7]
Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Debut Novel (2020)^[7]
Locus Award for Best First Novel nominee (2021)^[8]
Lodestar Award finalist (2021)^[9]
American Library Association (ALA) Top Ten Best Fiction (2021)^[10]
ALA Top Ten Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults (2021)^[11]
ALA Teens' Top Ten (2021)^[12]
Publishers Weekly Best Books of the Year (2020)^[13]
Barnes & Noble Best New Books of the Year (2020)^[14]
National Book Award longlist (2020)^[15]
NPR Best Books of the Year (2020)^[16]
School Library Journal's (SLJ) Top 10 Audiobooks of 2020^[17]
School Library Best Books of the Year^[1]
Book Riot's Most Anticipated Books of 2020^[18]
Tor.com's 25 Most Anticipated Science Fiction & Fantasy Books of 2020^[19]
Goodreads' 38 Most Anticipated YA Novels of 2020^[20]
Paste's Most Anticipated Young Adult Novels of 2020^[21]
Bitch Media's 25 YA Novels Feminists Should Read in 2020^[22]

Lost in the Never Woods

Lost in the Never Woods was published on March 23, 2021, by Swoon Reads and is a retelling of Peter Pan. The book, as well as the audiobook, received a starred review from Booklist.^[23]

The Sunbearer Trials

In November 2021, Thomas announced the release of their next book, The Sunbearer Trials, a Mexican-inspired fantasy.^[24] The book was published on September 6, 2022 by Feiwel & Friends.^[25]

In November 2023, Thomas announced the finale in this series, Celestial Monsters, to be published on September 3, 2024.^[26]

Just Max

In October 2021, Thomas announced the acquisition of Just Max,^[27] a contemporary YA novel about a trans boy going to college and navigating all the new experiences that includes. Release is set for Winter 2024.^[28]

References

^ ^a ^b "Aiden Thomas". Macmillan Publishers. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "Media Kit". Aiden Thomas. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "Cemetery Boys". Kirkus Reviews. July 15, 2020. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ March Soloway, Jennifer (June 25, 2020). "Children's Book Review: Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ Bittner, Rob (May 1, 2020). Cemetery Boys. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via Booklist.
^ "The Bram Stoker Awards 2020". The Bram Stoker Awards. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Cemetery Boys". Goodreads. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "2021 Locus Awards Winners". Locus. June 26, 2021. Archived from the original on December 17, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "2021 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. January 1, 2021. Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "2021 Top Ten Best Fiction". Young Adult Library Services Association. January 14, 2021. Archived from the original on January 14, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "2021 Top Ten Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults". Young Adult Library Services Association. January 5, 2021. Archived from the original on January 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "2021 Teens' Top Ten" (PDF). Young Adult Library Services Association. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 7, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "Best Books 2020: Publishers Weekly Publishers Weekly". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "Cemetery Boys". Barnes & Noble. Archived from the original on October 18, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "National Book Awards 2020". National Book Foundation. Archived from the original on September 17, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "NPR's Best Books Of 2020". NPR Visuals. Archived from the original on July 8, 2020. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ Klose, Stephanie. "Top 10 Audiobooks of 2020". School Library Journal. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "Most Anticipated Books of 2020". Book Riot. January 13, 2020. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ Stubby the Rocket (January 2, 2020). "The 25 Most Anticipated Science Fiction & Fantasy Books of 2020". Tor. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ "The 38 Most Anticipated YA Novels of 2020". Goodreads. Archived from the original on October 11, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ Smith, Eric (December 27, 2019). "The Most Anticipated Young Adult Novels of 2020". Paste. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ Strolle, Rachel (January 7, 2020). "25 YA Novels Feminists Should Read in 2020". Bitch Media. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
^ Smith, Candace (June 1, 2021). Lost in the Never Woods. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via Booklist.
- Leary, Alaina (February 1, 2021). Lost in the Never Woods. Archived from the original on September 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021 – via Booklist.
^ Thomas, Aiden (November 22, 2021). "Welcome to... ✨THE SUNBEARER TRIALS✨ this stunning over was designed by @LizDresner and @mmarsloud is back at it again with this GORGEOUS cover art featuring our main character, Teo!". Twitter. Archived from the original on April 29, 2022. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
^ "The Sunbearer Trials". Macmillan. Archived from the original on April 19, 2022. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
^ Thomas, Aiden (November 17, 2023). "who's ready for an End of the World Road Trip?". Instagram. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
^ Thomas, Aiden (October 19, 2021). "my way of surviving quarantine was to write a story about a trans boy starting college, experiencing the foibles of being stealth in a co-ed dorm, and falling in love with the cute boy who offered to tutor him in math and now i get to share it!". Twitter. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
^ "Rights Report: Week of October 18, 2021". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved September 13, 2022.