Set against the backdrop of Derrymore Academy in 2007—a school where affluence is a given and luxury is second nature—To Have and Have More explores the intersecting lives of two very different teenage girls. Emery Hooper, adopted into an elite, country-club lifestyle, seems to glide effortlessly through a world of designer bags, yacht licenses, and lavish vacations. But her polished life is complicated by the persistent presence of Lilah Chang, a Chinese-American classmate who clashes with Emery’s image of belonging and perfection.

Lilah is simultaneously in awe of and alienated by the extravagant privilege that surrounds her, where her peers discard MacBooks like old notebooks and flaunt limitless spending. Her attempts to fit in are tangled with a curiosity about another Asian girl—Emery—who seems to have mastered this rarefied world.

As subtle racism and class tensions bubble beneath the surface, the two girls form an uneasy, evolving friendship. Together, they begin to question the unchecked entitlement around them, even as their bond is tested by the very privilege that divides them. As senior year unfolds, college dreams loom large, and one unsettling truth becomes clear: in a world where money shields consequences, not everyone is held to the same standard.

Join the salon for our inaugural read! To Have and Have More is available here- Bookshop.org sales are pulled from their distributor and the full sale goes exclusively to independent bookstores.