Only This Beautiful Moment

GUARDIAN YA BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2023

WINNER OF THE 2024 STONEWALL YOUNG ADULT AWARD

From a Stonewall Honor–winning author comes a sweeping story of three generations of boys in the same Iranian family. Perfect for fans of Last Night at the Telegraph Club, As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow and If You Still Recognise Me.

2019 – Moud is an out gay teen living in Los Angeles with his distant father, Saeed. When Moud gets the news that his grandfather in Iran is dying, he accompanies his dad to Tehran, where the revelation of family secrets will force Moud into a new understanding of his history, his culture, and himself.

1978 – Saeed is an engineering student with a promising future ahead of him in Tehran. But when his parents discover his involvement in the country’s burgeoning revolution, they send him to safety in America, a country Saeed despises. And even worse – he’s forced to live with the American grandmother he never knew existed.

1939 – Bobby, the son of a calculating Hollywood stage mother, lands a coveted MGM studio contract. But the fairy-tale world of glamour he’s thrust into has a dark side…

Set against the backdrop of Tehran and Los Angeles, this tale of intergenerational trauma and love is an ode to the fragile bonds of family, the hidden secrets of history and all the beautiful moments that make us who we are today.



PRAISE FOR ONLY THIS BEAUTIFUL MOMENT:

“A complex coming-of-a-story of these three boys who are inextricably linked, not only by family but in ways yet revealed. Abdi never fails to weave a powerful and moving story.” Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of Daisy Jones & The Six

“A deeply human story fuelled by love, hope, and longing.” Wibke Brueggemann, author of Love is for Losers

“The kind of story that YA literature was made for” Booklist, Starred Review

“A queer epic, a defiant piece of art that transmutes the rallying cry of “we’re here, we’re queer, get used to it” into even more beautiful poetry that will almost certainly change the lives of those who read it” BookPage, Starred Review

“This is a queer epic, a defiant tale weaving generations and cultures to create a fantastic story.” Children's Book Ireland