A young alien stranded on Earth chose the appearance of a Black teenage boy, befriended two human siblings and tried to figure out how to survive on a planet he did not completely understand while searching for a way home.

But there is another kind of strength that does not receive nearly enough attention: the strength to stop yourself. The ability to control your anger when you could unleash it. The discipline to refuse revenge when you finally have the advantage. The character to possess power without allowing power to possess you.

Somebody starts to say something important and loses their nerve. One of them sees the other laughing with somebody else and suddenly becomes much more interested in whatever is sitting in front of them. None of those moments declares love, but together they create a feeling the reader can recognize before the characters are ready to name it.