Chris Orcutt’s 1980s teen novel series lands as New York schools go phone-free

Novelist and former teacher Chris Orcutt is promoting his nine-book Bodaciously True & Totally Awesome series as New York students return to phone-free classrooms for the 2026-27 school year. The books lean into 1980s analog teen life, and the next installment arrives Oct. 20.

Why it matters: - New York students are starting a fully phone-free school year after last year’s statewide ban. - Orcutt’s series taps into that moment with stories set in an era when teen life was shaped by handwritten notes, landlines and MTV. - The books offer a contrast between today’s connected classrooms and the unplugged high school experience of the 1980s.

What happened: - Novelist and former high school teacher Chris Orcutt is spotlighting his nine-book series, Bodaciously True & Totally Awesome. - The series follows suburban Hudson Valley teen Avery “Ace” Craig and classmates through romance, sexual awakening and high school life. - Episode IV, Secret Lovers, is scheduled for release Oct. 20, 2026. - Episodes I through III are available now.

The details: - Orcutt previously taught high school American studies and college English. - Orcutt wrote Bodaciously offline, using pencils and vintage typewriters for early drafts. - Orcutt said he spent more than a decade immersed in 1980s teen culture while avoiding the internet as he worked on the series. - The books are set in the suburban Hudson Valley and draw on shared cultural touchstones such as television, music and movies. - The series also looks at teens coping with major events of the era, including the Challenger explosion and the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. - Orcutt said today’s constant connectivity can hurt attention spans and interpersonal communication skills. - Orcutt said smartphones can make students more impatient and stressed because of social media, nonstop information and surveillance from parents, friends and romantic partners.

Between the lines: - The series is being positioned as both nostalgia and commentary on the limits of digital life. - Phone-free schools give younger students a glimpse of the analog world Orcutt writes about, but with more adult support than many teens had in the 1980s. - The pitch also frames the books as a back-to-school alternative for readers interested in a less connected version of adolescence. - Since debuting in January, the series has drawn strong early notices for its scope, originality and nostalgic detail. - BlueInk Review called Episode I “awesome,” Midwest Book Review called it “a different coming-of-age novel that simmers with discovery,” Foreword Clarion praised its immersive nostalgia and cultural detail, and Kirkus Reviews called it “a light-hearted, swift adventure.”

What’s next: - Secret Lovers will extend the series in October. - Orcutt’s promotion will likely keep tying the books to the broader debate over smartphones, attention and school culture. - The early reviews suggest the series is aiming for readers who want period detail as much as plot.

The bottom line: - Orcutt is using the phone-free school moment to sell a sharply analog vision of teen life in the 1980s.