True biz (adj./exclamation; American Sign Language): really, seriously, definitely, real-talk

True biz? The students at the River Valley School for the Deaf just want to hook up, pass their history finals, and have politicians, doctors, and their parents stop telling them what to do with their bodies. This revelatory novel plunges readers into the halls of a residential school for the deaf, where they’ll meet Charlie, a rebellious transfer student who’s never met another deaf person before; Austin, the school’s golden boy, whose world is rocked when his baby sister is born hearing; and February, the hearing headmistress, a CODA (child of deaf adult(s)) who is fighting to keep her school open and her marriage intact, but might not be able to do both. As a series of crises both personal and political threaten to unravel each of them, Charlie, Austin, and February find their lives inextricable from one another — and changed forever.

This is a story of sign language and lip-reading, disability and civil rights, isolation and injustice, first love and loss, and, above all, great persistence, daring, and joy. Absorbing and assured, idiosyncratic and relatable, this is an unforgettable journey into the Deaf community and a universal celebration of human connection.

The Accolades

• 2023 American Library Association Alex Award Winner
• BEST BOOKS OF 2022—Publisher’s Weekly, Washington Post, NPR, Booklist, Audible, Goodreads
• New York Times bestseller and Reese’s Book Club pick

The Reviews

“Tender, beautiful, and radiantly outraged….This important novel should—true biz—change minds and transform the conversation.” — Maile Meloy, the New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)

“Part tender coming-of-age story, part electrifying tale of political awakening, part heartfelt love letter to Deaf culture, True Biz is wholly a wonder. Sara Nović examines the ways language can include, exclude, or help forge an identity—as well as what it means to carve out a place for yourself in a world that sees you as other.”—Celeste Ng, New York Times bestselling author of Little Fires Everywhere

“This is my favorite kind of novel, fascinating and smart and brimming with contrasts. It’s a coming-of-age story but also one of anarchy and protest. It’s about the ways communities are bound but also the ways they bind. It’s about belonging versus conforming, individual strength alongside solidarity. I laughed. I learned. I entered a world I knew too little about, at once different from mine and of course the same. I will be recommending this book to absolutely everyone.”—Laurie Frankel, New York Times bestselling author of This Is How It Always Is and One Two Three

“Sara Novic is one of the best writers of my generation—not just the novelist of Deaf culture, but of human nature writ large. Do yourself a favor and get this book—it is inimitable.”—Ilya Kaminsky, author of Deaf Republic and Dancing in Odessa