In the fall of 1973, fifteen-year-old Caroline Black leaves Laurel Academy for Girls and transfers to her local public school, Hollywood High. At first, Caroline is overwhelmed. The students come from all over the world. Some kids live in wealthy homes, others on the streets, and everywhere in between. In Caroline's first few weeks, she brings her homework to the library, where a knife fight breaks out. She volunteers to tutor and is assigned the leader of a gang. She witnesses a gay student bullied by a pack of boys. Growing up bookish in a film industry family, feeling like an outsider, Caroline rebels against the toxic Hollywood culture of influential men who see teen girls as easy prey. At her new school, she finds a group of friends and begins to realize that she belongs. But with so many students dealt such a rough hand, peaceful coexistence isn't easy at Hollywood High. When her LGBTQ+ friends are targeted, she has no idea what to do. Still, she feels compelled to take a risk and step up. Then she finds herself threatened by a sexual predator, and discovers hidden strengths she never imagined. Originally published as Hollywood High: Achieve the Honorable , this historical YA novel, set in the 1970s, has been rewritten to address the targeting of the LGBTQ+ communities, systemic racism in education, and the impact of bullying. Hollywood Pride is a coming-of-age story about self-discovery, standing up for others, the power of friendship, and the true meaning of allyship. Kirkus Review In Burk's historical YA novel, a privileged private-school student makes her first foray into a much more diverse public school. In 1973, Caroline Black is the new girl at Hollywood High. She already knows it'll be a drastic change from the Laurel Academy for Girls, a predominantly white prep school. Still, she's surprised by the students' relatively lax attitudes and understandably shaken by the knife fight she witnesses during her free period. Caroline comes from wealth—her father is an Oscar-winning cinematographer, and her mother is a psychiatrist—but she easily makes friends with people of various social classes, races, and sexual identities. Hollywood High has its share of bigots, and the LGBTQ+ students seem to suffer the most. Some are too scared to express their true selves, while others are targets of vicious physical assaults. Caroline becomes fixated on a blond boy living in difficult circumstances whose face, she believes, radiates "sadness" and "longing"; he's an unfortunate victim of the misguided hatred Caroline wishes she could vanquish. Burk's protagonist teems with admirable traits: She's intelligent, compassionate, and willing to step outside her comfort zone. (Caroline patiently tutors The Duke, a Black gang member who she helps realize is smarter than others assume.) She is also, however, largely an observer in this deliberately paced story. With her father in the entertainment industry, she's privy to Hollywood superficiality, especially regarding women (older men incessantly hit on her at events). At the same time, she's a rich, straight white girl unable to fully relate to peers who endure racism, homophobia, and savage bullying. It's wonderful that Caroline champions all types of people and helps however she can, but readers may wish the extensive supporting cast—including romantic couple, transgender Toni and nonbinary Blake; the Duke, who faces a life-changing decision; and a gay student who bravely comes out—received more of the spotlight. A glorious medley of characters bolsters this tale of adolescents confronting narrow-mindedness. Amy Kaufman Burk grew up in the Hollywood Hills surrounded by creativity. Her father wrote screenplays, and her home was filled with directors, actors, authors, and thousands of books. Amy graduated from Hollywood High School, then studied psychology at Yale College, graduating cum laude with distinction in her major. She earned a master's degree in Health and Medical Sciences from UC Berkeley and a Doctorate in Mental Health from UC San Francisco. After practicing psychotherapy for over twenty years, she began writing. Hollywood Pride is based on Amy's experience in tenth grade, when she transferred from a college prep academy to the local public high school. At her new school, she found over forty languages spoken among the students, no single racial heritage a majority, and an economic spectrum ranging from kids living on the streets to the wealthy homes in the Hollywood Hills. Hollywood High's diverse community shaped Amy's outlook on all aspects of her life going forward. She lives in North Carolina.