Books That Bring Young Readers Together
Posted on July 9, 2019
by Catashia H
The books in this blog post explore topics that promote critical thinking and inspire discussions of friendship, perseverance and life choices.
Books for Teens
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Challenger Deep by Neal ShustermanA brilliant but troubled high school student pretends to engage in sports activities and uses his artistic talents to document his voyage to the world’s most southern point while his friends observe his increasingly unbalanced behavior. |
Like a Love Story by Abdi NazemianWhen Reza moves to New York City, he begins dating Judy even though he is secretly gay and then struggles with his feelings when he grows close to Judy’s best friend Art, who is openly gay. |
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On the Come Up by Angie ThomasA follow-up to the award-winning The Hate U Give finds an ambitious young rapper pouring her frustrations into a first song only to find herself at the center of a viral controversy that forces her to become the menace that her public reputation has portrayed her to be. |
The Poet X by Elizabeth AcevedoWhen Xiomara Batista, who pours all her frustrations and passion into poetry, is invited to join the school slam poetry club, she struggles with her mother’s expectations and her need to be heard. |
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The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola YoonTwo teens–Daniel, the son of Korean shopkeepers, and Natasha, whose family is here illegally from Jamaica–cross paths in New York City on an eventful day in their lives–and fall in love. |
Watch Us Rise by Renee Watson and Ellen HaganFrustrated by the way women are treated–even at their progressive New York City high school–two best friends start a Women’s Rights Club, post their essays and poems online, and watch it go viral, attracting positive support as well as trolls. |
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When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemoreAs their deep friendship turns to love, Latina teenager Miel, who grows roses from her wrist, and Italian-Pakistani Samir, a transgender boy, fear their secrets will be exposed by the beautiful Bonner girls, four sisters rumored to be witches. |
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