Flowers for Algernon

by Daniel Keyes

I can remember the exact moment I fell in love with books: thirty years ago, in high school, finishing the last sentence of Flowers for Algernon, suddenly aware that this collection of paper and cardboard and glue in my hands had the power to change the way I saw the world. I was hooked.

- Scott Blumenthal, Managing Editor

Related Resources: AP Teaching Unit, Multiple Critical Perspectives, Activity Pack

Fahrenheit 451

by Ray Bradbury

I find it interesting and disturbing how Bradbury, back in 1953, predicted 21st-century technology and anti-intellectualism.

- Stephanie Polukis, Staff Writer

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Our Town

by Thornton Wilder

I read Our Town, by Thornton Wilder recently and fell in love with it. The play somehow manages to be both simplistic and deeply profound, not to mention super interesting in being metatheatrical. Its ending packs an unexpected emotional punch.

- Rachel Natboy, Editorial Assistant

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The Poisonwood Bible

by Barbara Kingsolver

I’d recommend The Poisonwood Bible. I read Kingsolver’s book in high school and loved how she told the story of missionaries in the Belgian Congo through five distinct narrative voices that range from mournfully contemplative to unwittingly humorous.

- Lisa Tetrault, Editorial Assistant

Related Resources: AP Teaching Unit, Multiple Critical Perspectives, Response Journal

Catch-22

by Joseph Heller

When I was sixteen, my friend gave me an anti-war book to read called Catch-22 and my perspective on fiction, satire, and writing has never been the same.

- Paul Moliken, Senior Editor

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All the Light We Cannot See

by Anthony Doerr

Thanks to its short chapters, alternating points of view, and compelling plot, this book is one of the quickest reads that I’ve come across in a long time. When I’m asked for a recently-released book to recommend, this book is always the first one I recommend.

- Keith Bergstrom, President

Their Eyes Were Watching God

by Zora Neale Hurston

The one “Joy to Teach” title that stands out more than any other is Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God. It’s a heartbreaking, yet inspiring story, beautifully told. It demonstrates both artistry and craft and illustrates what literature in the United States once aspired to.

- Douglas Grudzina, Senior New Product Development Specialist

Related Resources: AP Teaching Unit, Levels of Understanding, Activity Pack

Spoon River Anthology

by Edgar Lee Masters

Reading Spoon River is a shameless celebration of nosy eavesdropping and juicy gossip spreading—the guiltiest of pleasures—but in revealing the true ugliness, despair, and failures of its ordinary, small-town characters, it makes heroes of them all, and betrays the bittersweet beauty of real life.

- Daniel Reed, Senior Staff Writer

Related Resources: Teaching Unit