A. J. Sass

Andrew "A. J." Sass^[1] is an American author of children's and young adult fiction, best known for his middle grade contemporary novel, Ana on the Edge, and his Time op-ed discussing transgender and non-binary character representation in youth literature.^[2]

A. J. Sass
Born	United States
Occupation	Novelist
Language	English
Genres	Middle grade, young adult: contemporary, sports, LGBTQIA+, nonfiction
Years active	2020–present
Notable works	Ana on the Edge
Website
sassinsf.com

Personal life

Sass grew up in the Midwestern and Southern United States^[3] and began training in figure skating as a child. He passed his U.S. Figure Skating Senior Moves in the Field test while in law school,^[4] then worked as a technical writer and legal editor^[4] while writing creatively on the side. His debut middle grade novel, Ana on the Edge, was purchased by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.^[5]

At the age of 33, Sass passed the U.S. Figure Skating Senior Free Skate test,^[4] then went on to compete as a member of the Masters synchronized skating team, IceSymmetrics.^[4] IceSymmetrics won the bronze medal at the 2018 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships^[6] and the silver medal at the 2019 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships.^[7] Sass also holds test judge appointments with U.S. Figure Skating in Gold Singles and Bronze Ice Dance.^[4]

Sass is Jewish^[8] and autistic.^[4] He describes himself as gay, transmasculine^[8] and non-binary, and uses he/him and they/them pronouns.^[9]

He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.^[8]

Selected works

Ana on the Edge

Sass' debut novel follows twelve-year-old Ana-Marie Jin, the reigning U.S. Juvenile figure skating champion, as Ana navigates old and new friendships, the financial hardships of elite figure skating, and a newly discovered non-binary gender identity.^[10] It was published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers on October 20, 2020, and received a starred review from Booklist.^[11] Ana on the Edge went on to be named a Booklist Editors' Choice: Books for Youth, 2020 selection,^[12] an American Library Association 2021 Rainbow List Top 10 for Young Readers title,^[13] a selection in the Chicago Review of Books Notable List of Debut Books by Trans, Non-binary, and Gender Non-conforming Authors,^[14] and was named to the New York Public Library's "Favorite Trans, Nonbinary, and GNC Titles of 2020.^[15] It also received a favorable review in The New York Times Book Review.^[16]

Ellen Outside the Lines

Sass' second novel features Ellen Katz, an autistic thirteen-year-old, who is attempting to regain a long-time friendship on a class trip to Barcelona, Spain. It explores Spanish and Catalan culture, as well as queer and Jewish identity.^[4] Ellen Outside the Lines released on March 22, 2022, from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.

Camp QUILTBAG

Co-authored with Nicole Melleby, Camp QUILTBAG is a story about twelve-year-old Abigail Rabb and thirteen-year-old Kai Lindquist, who are attending a summer camp for queer youth for vastly different reasons. They make a pact to help themselves settle in at camp, all while navigating their queer identities and a competition pitting cabin against cabin.^[17] It was released by Algonquin Young Readers on March 21, 2023. It was named an American Library Association 2024 Rainbow List Top 10 for Young Readers title.^[18]

Bibliography

Novels

• Ana on the Edge (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2020)
• Ellen Outside the Lines (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2022)
• Camp QUILTBAG (Algonquin Young Readers, 2023; co-authored with Nicole Melleby)
• Just Shy of Ordinary (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2024)

Essays

• "This Is What It Feels Like" in Allies: Real Talk About Showing Up, Screwing Up, and Trying Again (DK/Penguin Random House, 2021)

Short stories

• "Balancing Acts" in This Is Our Rainbow: 16 Stories of Her, Him, Them, and Us (Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2021)

Op eds

• "I'm a Nonbinary Writer of Youth Literature. J.K. Rowling's Comments on Gender Identity Reinforced My Commitment to Better Representation" (Time, 2020)