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Top Ten Books You Believe Should Be Required Reading For Teens (contemporary, YA, adult fic, whatever you fancy)
This took a bit of thought! I thought about all of the horrible books I was forced to read in high school... and a few good ones that I did enjoy. Then I thought about some of the YA books I have read in recent years, and if they had any merit to them! Next, I asked my teenagers...but didn't get too good of a response...it was mostly, "That was a good book, but I didn't learn anything from it." Some of the ones below I gave reasons for my choosing them... and I added a few more than 10...I couldn't narrow it down any further.
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card– (Sci Fi) This one got four out of five (only because the 5th didn’t read it) votes in our family. Hard to describe why it made our list, but it did. The writing isn’t the best, but it’s the story that gets you!
Diary of a Young Girl, by Anne Frank – (Non Fiction/History) I felt that this was such an optimistic and realistic account of the Holocaust.
1984 by George Orwell – (Sci-Fi/Futuristic) It is one of those classic books that looked towards the future and what it might be like to live in a society of “Big Brother.”
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury– (Sci-Fi/Censorship) The burning of books and what kind of society it would create.
Persuasion by Jane Austen – Classic – I think that out of all of Jane Austen’s books, this one would be most accessible to teenagers, boys and girls. I think we need to throw out Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre, and get some Jane Austen into students. Especially with so many mash-ups of her books, it would be good for students to read this classic author.
The Giver by Lois Lowry(though I have never read the book) – (Dystopia)
Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger– (Banned Book) Typical teenage angst
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien– (Fantasy, great literature) I think that this is a little more ‘accessible’ than the LOTR triology… and a beginning to it all.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald– (Portrait of 1920’s) Decadence and excess. Asking my 18yo, she mentioned that most of her friends had marked this as a favorite book.
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery- (Philosophical) To see the world with the wonderment of a child.
True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi – (Fiction) – “An ocean voyage of unimaginable consequences... Not every thirteen-year-old girl is accused of murder, brought to trial, and found guilty. But I was just such a girl, and my story is worth relating even if it did happen years ago. Be warned, however: If strong ideas and action offend you, read no more. Find another companion to share your idle hours. For my part I intend to tell the truth as I lived it.”
I found this book fascinating and after reading it, I felt that all young teenagers should read it!
Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach- (Philosophical) You don’t know until you try… and why not try… you need to find out for yourself if you can do it!
A Break with Charity by Ann Rinaldi– (Historical Fiction) about the Salem Witch Trials – would be great pairing with an American History class
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens– (Classic) If students must read Dickens, I think this would be better than Great Expectations.
I am looking forward to seeing your list! What do you think about this one?!
I am looking forward to seeing your list! What do you think about this one?!
