recommendations to require | books i think should be high school required reading
Hey, dear friends, it’s me again. How are you doing? I know for many of us affected by the US elections, this past week has been a heavy one. I want to take a second to intentionally breathe. Breathe in love and steadfastness and hope and revolution, and breathe out grief and rage and exhaustion. It’s okay to feel all those things right now, I encourage you to feel them all and let them motivate you towards action, because the work isn’t done, friends, and, boy, is it good work to be doing.
Today I have a post for the future generation. We’ve all at some point been assigned books to read in school for some reason or another. I can imagine that in the next four years, assigned reading and the skills it can build (such as metacognition, being able to understand nuance deeply, being able to do reliable research on a specific topic, emotional and mental exploration, and empathy) will become increasingly important. So, today I want to talk about the contemporary literature that I’d assign to high school students in particular. Let’s take a look…
the hate you give by angie thomas
This one is probably an obvious one, but I think The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is definitely top of my list of recommended required reading for high schoolers. The book tackles the revelant and pressing issue of modern-day police brutality in a way that teens can understand and relate to without feeling talked down to. The Hate U Give is a book that teens (and, really, adults as well) can either relate to and feel heard by or learn something from, and I think that’s one of the most important things a book can do, in all honesty. Unfortunately this book has been the target of multiple book banning attempts in US school districts, as documented by Marshall University. I would implore teachers and librarians not to think twice about adding this book to curriculum, though, as I’d argue it’s one of the most important books of the first quarter of the 21st century!
the hunger games by suzanne collins
This series came out around the time I entered high school and by the time I graduated it was already required reading for lower level Engish courses at my public high school. That said, I’m not sure if The Hunger Games is typically required reading in the rest of the US so I’m keeping it on my list. This series talks about everything from corruption in government to revolution to child soldiers to PTSD, and manages to do so in a nuanced way whilst still being a fun and action packed story. The biggest thing I think teens could take away from this series, though, is a valuable lesson about standing up for what’s ultimately right, even if it’s not easy.
heartstopper by alice oseman
High school is a time where a lot of teens are figuring themselves out, including exploring and discovering their own sexualities and gender identities, which is why I think the Heartstopper graphic novel series would be a great pick for them! Not only is Heartstopper an abslutely ADORABLE series, it also introduces teens to a wide variety of LGBT+ identities, whilst normalizing those identities. It’s also one of the rare teen book series that centers teen boys, and discusses things like their mental health, which is amazing! I think teens would really enjoy reading about the teenage cast of Heartstopper and find a lot of comfort in the similar things that they experience.
a study in drowning by ava reid
This is a kinda tough recommend because while A Study in Drowning is technically a Young Adult book, it also deals very viscerally with the intense themes of sexism and misogyny, sexual assault and grooming, child abuse and neglect, death of a loved one, and violence and gore. That said, I do think it’s ultimately written in a very considered way such that most teens could handle reading it. I do also think it’s really important for teens to be exposed to those concepts in a safe manner, and through literature is a great option for that. Further, I also think that learning to have a solid understanding of misogyny and sexism in its various forms is really important not only for girls, but also for boys, and I think A Study in Drowning could give teens just that.
one for all by lillie lainoff
Disability and chronic illness are topics that, unfortunately, are often left undiscussed both in school and in wider society. Further, most media—both factual media and entertainment media—is rife with ableism, if disability is even mentioned at all. Lillie Lainoff’s debut novel, One for All, is an adventurous, #OwnVoices, gender-bent retelling of The Three Musketeers which celebrates the fact that folks with disbabilities/chronic illnesses can be heroes not despite their disabilities/chronic illnesses but with them. One for All is a great introduction to the topics of disability and disability justice—and it’s a fun read to boot! It’s also a book that has the potential to allow disabled/chronically ill students to feel seen and included, which is an invaluable thing as well.
So, dear friends, that’s all I got for you today. I hope you got a recommendation or two, and maybe also found some gentle hope and strength to take with you as well. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a big cup of chai and a good book calling my name. Until next time, dear friends…
spill the beans, friends!
What books would you make required reading for high schoolers? Did you have any required reading in high school that you think was particularly impactful? How do you feel about the concept of required reading for high schoolers in general?
Thank you so much for this post! During my thirteen years teaching high school, I struggled with my students’ increasing apathy towards reading. When I first began teaching my comic books and social justice course kids would say, “I probably shouldn’t tell you this but I never read a book for school before. But I tried this…and I loved it!” Come last year, my last year teaching it, students wouldn’t even try reading a comic book because, “It’s too much. This is too long.” And I’d think, “….um, some pages the only word is literally ‘KRAKA-KOOOOM’ or something like that.”
I know we see more and more data about most kids in high school now never having read a book for pleasure and it’s easy to just throw up our hands and say, “Whatever, kids today just don’t read.” But we can’t do that! We mustn’t. As you said above, in the wake of the election we see reading, empathy, and especially media literacy is more important now than it’s ever been.
All this is to say, pieces like what you’ve written here and the conversation you’re starting are SO IMPORTANT. We need to read. We need to! We can’t grow as individuals or as a society if we don’t. And I don’t believe it’s a lost cause either. It becomes a little harder every year, sure. But ultimately it all comes down to what we choose to have the kids read. I love all your choices. And I love, love, love that you’re having this conversation. Thank you.
I’m so glad my piece meant a lot to you, Michael, that means so much to me! I definitely agree that reading and teaching literacy is so very important beyond just teaching vocabulary and grammar comprehension! I feel like my literature classes have always been classes that have subtly helped me understand both the world and myself (and how those two things are connected) so much better. I feel for kids and teachers today because the increasing speed of our technological age has made it more difficult to get people of all ages interested in “slow artforms” such as reading. That said, I also feel like between literature, tv & film, podcasts, and video games, we’re also in a uniquely rich period of storytelling, which makes it all the more sad that people seem to want to “check out” from consuming stories. But Lord knows we need stories (I say that not just as an avid story eater but also as an anthropology major), they’re so important, and I hope and must continue to believe that they’ll always find their way to us!
Great post! And I love the picture you used, it’s so pretty!!
Thank you 😊