Bless Me, Ultima

Rudolfo Anaya

If you’re seeking cultural diversity in your literature curriculum, Rudolfo Anaya's classic piece of Chicano literature is an excellent choice! In 1940s New Mexico, an old healer named Ultima comes to stay with Antonio and his family. Intrigued by Ultima’s mysterious aura and knowledge of folk magic, Antonio opens his eyes to a spiritual realm that was once unfamiliar. Anaya's use of the supernatural and his fine lyrical prose bring the novel’s themes of innocence, spirituality, and good versus evil to life.

The Hate U Give

Angie Thomas

Poignant and topical, The Hate U Give is being lauded as one of this generation’s most important books. When a police officer kills sixteen-year-old Starr Carter’s childhood best friend, her world is irrevocably upended. The Hate U Give deftly tackles themes of racism, police brutality, and societal injustice and will undoubtedly lead to plenty of interesting discussions, both in and out of the classroom.

Unwind

Neal Shusterman

If you want to include contemporary science fiction in your curriculum, consider Unwind. This National Book Award winner tackles themes of free will, consciousness, and trust throughout its gripping story. After the Second Civil War, which had been fought over reproductive rights, three teenagers try to escape being “unwound”—having their organs harvested and distributed to others against their will. Although each comes from a different background, the teenagers band together for survival, learning the true meaning of life on their journey to freedom.

The Book Thief

Markus Zusak

One of the ALA's Best Books for Young Adults, The Book Thief is an outstanding young adult novel with a unique perspective on the Holocaust: Death himself is the narrator, offering his take on this difficult topic. Even reluctant readers will be enthralled by the manner in which Death relates his duties in wartime, and your more active readers will experience the variety in point of view that the author has created. The book is truly an amazing work of creativity, one that will fully engage your classes.

Monster

Walter Dean Myers

Written by Walter Dean Myers, Monster is sure to engage even your most unwilling readers because of its unconventional structure and captivating plot. Part epistle, part screenplay, Monster tells the story of Steve Harmon, a teenager from Harlem on trial as an accomplice to murder. While in jail, he records his experiences, both in prison and in the courtroom, in the form of a film script. As they read Monster, students will appreciate Harmon’s perspective in full as he tries to come to terms with the course his life has taken.

The Fault in Our Stars

John Green

Thanks to its movie adaptation, your students may already be familiar with this title. After meeting one another at a cancer support group, teenagers Hazel and Augustus soon fall in love, bonding over their uncertain futures. However, their relationship eventually is cut short by the disease. Both funny and tragic, The Fault in Our Stars will certainly make your students ponder heavy subjects like love, death, and the unfair nature of fate.

Fast Food Nation

Eric Schlosser

Often compared to The Jungle by Upton Sinclair, Eric Schlosser's nonfiction book Fast Food Nation takes an unflinching look at the controversial facets of the fast food industry, including the exploitation of minimum wage workers, the dangers of child-targeted advertising, and the often hazardous conditions of food processing plants. Use this book as an engaging way to introduce students to investigative journalism and to examine broader themes of ethics and consumerism.

Refugee

Alan Gratz

Three different refugee stories come together in this gripping book by Alan Gratz. Though their narratives span time and place, Josef, a Jewish boy in 1939 Germany; Isabel, a Cuban girl in 1994; and Mahmoud, a Syrian boy in 2015, all face danger, death, and discrimination on their journeys to seek safety. Refugee is a great choice for students who love historical fiction and realistic narratives.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Stephen Chbosky

Written as a series of letters to a friend, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is the story of Charlie, a quiet high school freshman who prefers to observe the world around him, a result stemming from the trauma he endured as a child. But after befriending Patrick and Sam, two quirky seniors, Charlie finds the value in participating in life and begins to heal from his past. Your students will surely find Charlie’s accounts of adolescent issues, including social pressures, dating, and identity, all too relatable.

Life of Pi

Yann Martel

Yann Martel’s allegorical novel comments heavily on the roles of spirituality and nature in shaping one’s identity and encouraging personal growth. After a storm sinks the ship on which his family was traveling, Pi Patel finds himself adrift in a small lifeboat with only a large Bengal tiger to keep him company. Despite his circumstances, Pi is determined to survive, relying on his spiritual beliefs to keep his morale high.

The Glass Castle

Jeannette Walls

Jeannette Walls’s memoir, The Glass Castle, explores her unconventional upbringing by an alcoholic father and erratic mother. Her parents’ nomadic lifestyle, spurred by debt and unemployment, exposed Walls to the harsh realities of poverty and ostracism at a young age. Both humorous and heart-wrenching, this memoir speaks greatly to the power of forgiveness and resilience.

The Leavers

Lisa Ko

Winner of the 2016 PEN/Bellwether Prize for Fiction, The Leavers is a powerful novel that examines cultural heritage, familial relationships, and the true meaning of belonging. When his mother, an undocumented Chinese immigrant, suddenly goes missing, a boy named Deming Guo finds himself completely alone. It’s not until he’s adopted by well-meaning white parents and renamed Daniel Wilkinson that he realizes just how much he has lost.

The Things They Carried

Tim O'Brien

Since its publication in 1990, The Things They Carried has become an unparalleled portrayal of the Vietnam War, an incomparable work of American literature, and a staple title taught in schools across the country. Its structure, a set of related short stories based on Tim O’Brien’s experiences, will keep your students eager to read more, and what the soldiers endured will educate your students on the horrors of war.

Nickel and Dimed

Barbara Ehrenreich

When journalist Barbara Ehrenreich decides to go undercover as a minimum wage worker, she discovers just how challenging life is for millions of Americans. This investigative nonfiction title makes a great springboard for conversations about the causes and effects of income inequality, and Ehrenreich's comprehensive analysis of welfare reform will make your students think about the social responsibility of both governments and individuals.

Sing, Unburied, Sing

Jesmyn Ward

Sing, Unburied, Sing—a masterpiece of American magical realism—will haunt readers long after they’ve finished the book. In Jesmyn Ward’s award-winning novel, set in the heart of Mississippi, young Jojo and his family embark on a road trip to pick up his father from prison. Family legacies, violence, and the brutalities of racism seem to define his family—until he meets a literal ghost at the prison who has something very important to teach Jojo.

The Other Wes Moore

Wes Moore

Two boys, both named Wes Moore, live in Baltimore just blocks from each other, but their similar backgrounds result in wildly different outcomes. One Wes Moore became a Rhodes scholar, and the other a convicted murderer. Students interested in exploring the ways in which education, socioeconomic disparity, and parental support shape the individual—for better or for worse—will find this nonfiction title an insightful read.

Never Let Me Go

Kazuo Ishiguro

At its surface, Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go is a stunning coming-of-age tale centered around a woman named Kathy and her memories of her days at a boarding school in England. However, as Kathy's story progresses, Never Let Me Go transforms into a dystopian science-fiction novel, revealing a world in which human cloning is the norm. Aside from presenting students the opportunity to discuss themes of mortality and fate, this novel’s complex plot will also help students refine their inference skills.

The Handmaid’s Tale

Margaret Atwood

In Margaret Atwood’s 1985 novel, under the rule of a theocratic regime, women have no autonomy and are instead assigned to specific societal roles. Told from the perspective of an oppressed woman whose sole purpose is to reproduce, The Handmaid’s Tale warns of the dangers of totalitarianism and is sure to ignite classroom discussions about identity, persecution, and female empowerment.

The Road

Cormac McCarthy

There’s a reason The Road won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. In this post-apocalyptic story, an unnamed father and son journey through a desolate landscape, fighting gangs of thieves and cannibals to survive. While certainly bleak, and at times disturbing, Cormac McCarthy’s novel is ultimately a testament to the bond between a father and son and a brutal examination of humanity at its worst.

Just Mercy

Bryan Stevenson

The powerful, true story of one of America’s most committed lawyers, Just Mercy examines the inequalities of the justice system through a life dedicated to defending those most in need. This book is a perfect nonfiction pairing with To Kill a Mockingbird or A Lesson Before Dying. Just Mercy has won the Carnegie Medal for Excellence and numerous other awards.