Publication Date: February 3, 2026
A love story that’s messy, awkward, and weirdly wonderful. Just like real life.
Braden’s anxiety sends him spiraling over things like quitting the basketball team and the air quality in the cafeteria, yet through it all, he manages to be charming and act like everything is Just Fine.
Rae is on the spectrum; her passion is rescuing dogs online. She struggles over masking her autism, navigating group projects, and telling people exactly what she thinks—whether they like it or not. Braden and Rae don’t “fit in,” which makes it even harder to survive high school. But when Braden begins investigating a local environmental scandal and Rae starts speaking her truth in a blog about being on the spectrum, their worlds collide. Soon, they’re facing down bullies, fake bomb threats, blog trolls, and the terrifying vulnerability of first love.
Written in alternating viewpoints, Weirdos Welcome is a raw, funny, and fiercely compassionate neurodivergent love story about owning your oddness, standing up when it’s easier to disappear, and finding that person who doesn’t ask you to be “normal”—or even pretend to be. This is a story for anyone who’s ever been called a freak, felt too much, or wondered if their quirks made them unlovable. Spoiler alert: They don’t.
Weirdos Welcome by Cynthia Baseman will be a comforting read to many teenage readers. Braden is a high school athlete who decides to ditch athletics, which creates a sudden change in his schedule. Rae feels both overlooked and gawked at as she navigates the awkwardness of high school. Their paths cross in a Life Skills class where they each assist special-needs kids.
Rae understands her uniqueness as someone with autism. But most of her peers see her as a misfit. Braden was following his dad’s guidance to use athletics to secure a spot in high school with social status. When the story begins, it is quickly revealed that Braden’s tendency to a “worst-case scenario” mindset is now out of control because his close friend was killed in an accident. Each considers themselves a weirdo.
Rae soon discovers that she has caught Braden’s eye. He notices her particular beauty and the way she deals with details. But she was recently dumped by a popular boy, whom she suspects took advantage of her naïveté. So Braden’s compliments seem too good to be true. When she finally lets her guard down, she is flooded with physical and emotional feelings that she hasn’t experienced up to this point in her life.
The plot starts in an ordinary high school story way. Then the author deftly moves the characters into a timely storyline of fighting for an environmental cause that will affect them and those they love. Since Rae and Braden each deal with anxieties more intense than those of their neurotypical peers, this book will reach a base that may not see themselves portrayed in books. The depiction of Rae’s spirals and compensations really clarifies the difficulties that neurodivergent individuals face each day. The love story develops in an honest way that is neither too graphic nor too chaste.
The pair digs deep into their talents and fearlessly faces the bullies on their campus and the pushy adults who hope to strike a deal with an oil company that promises to send funds to the school. In the process, they earn the respect of a large part of the student body and their parents and finally see themselves as special and capable.
A rare and honest look at anxiety and autism. Weirdos Welcome portrays young love by depicting respect for social differences in order to find another’s true gifts.
Cynthia Baseman is the author of the #1 Amazon New Release Young Adult/Teen novel, WEIRDOS WELCOME. She writes stories that sit at the intersections of healing, humor, and humanity. From a deeply personal memoir about a mother’s journey through grief, to a whimsical children’s series created to spark curiosity, to her newest YA novel celebrating neurodivergent first love, she’s drawn to the moments that make us feel most alive. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, rescue pup and several chatty cockatiels.
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