Books with a Purpose
To Kill a Mockingbird
by Harper Lee
Genre: Southern Gothic
Themes: Courage & Equality
Grade Level: High School
Summary: The plot of this story revolves around three young children Jean Louise, Finch, and older brother, Jem, and their friend Dill. They all spend their summer holidays trying to learn more about their neighbor Arthur Radley and soon become caught up in the unfolding drama of the trial of Tom Robinson, a black man accused of raping Mayella Ewell, the daughter of a poor white man, Jean Louise narrates the story from adulthood as a reminiscence of her childhood.
This story helps students and readers that racism has occurred in the past and still occurs today within our society. Many innocent African Americans are behind bars for the falsely accused. I think it's important we recognize these issues. I also think it's important to recognize those who are guilty and are regretful of what they did.
A Long Walk to Water
by: Linda Sue Park
Genre: Fiction
Grade Level: 8th Grade
Themes: Emotional Aspects & Struggle of Survival
Summary: A Long Walk to Water demostrates the teachings about water conditions in South Sudan, Africa. The story is told from two perspectives, a girl named Nya and a boy named Salva. The reader follows the story of Salva and Nya's journey through Sudan with little water, and little family. This book empowers the stories of what one young child must do in order to survive which is so important for our younger generation to follow and understand how lucky America is to have water provided for us.
Of Mice and Men
by:John Steinbeck
Genre: Fiction
Grade Level: 9th Grade
Theme: Dreams, Friendships, Loneliness
Summary: Of Mice and Men revovles around two migrant workers, Lennie and George, as they seek work during the Depression with the goal they share of buying a place of their own where they can be in charge of their own lives. Lennie is not intelligent while George is. They find work on a farm and mix in with the other ranch hands. This book empowers on two characters that want to pursue their dreams together with also helping eachother out to get to their overall goal.
The Glass Castle
Genre: Memoir
Grade Level: 9th Grade
Themes: Family, Poverty, Education
Summary: The Glass Castle follows the authors family's travels through Nevada, Arizona, West Virginia, and eventually on to New York City, where Jeannette is able to escape the poverty and abuse that has defined her entire life. Walls endures obstacles no child should face and is obtained with the idea of being with her family and with siblings or seek a better life to live.
The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak
Genre: Historical Fiction
Grade Level: 12th Grade
Themes: Literacy & Power
Summary: a story narrated by a compassionate Death who tells the readers about Liesel, a girl growing up in Germany during World War II. Liesel steals books, learns to read, and finds comfort in words. She and Max, the Jewish man her family protects, are the only main characters who survive the war.
by Christina Lamb and Malala Yousafzai
Themes: Women's Rights & Power of Education
Summary: " I Am Malala" discussed the inspiring story of a young Pakistani girl who stood up for her right to an education in the face of danger. Malala refused to be silenced by Taliban rule, yet their brutal tactics seriously threatened her life. She miraculously survived and stands today to tell her story today about how she fought for her education.
Hidden Figures
Themes: Racism & The American Civil Rights Movement;
Summary: The book "Hidden Figures" demonstrates the biographies of three African-American women who worked as computers to solve problems for engineers and others at NASA. For the first years of their careers, the workplace was segregated and women were kept in the background as human computers.
The Great Gatsby
By: F. Scott Fitzgerald
Grade Level: 11th Grade
Genre: Fiction
Themes: American Dream & Wealth
Summary: The Great Gastby tells the story of the wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the married Daisy Buchanan, exploring themes of wealth, love, and the corruption of the American dream. The story battles with love affairs, secrecy and money.
Night
by Elie Wiesel
Genre: Memoir
Grade level: 11th Grade
Themes: Identity and Faith
Summary: In the Book "Night" Wiesel tells the story of Eliezer Wiesel, a studious Orthodox Jewish teenager living in Hungary in the early 1940s who is sent to Auschwitz, a concentration camp. In Auschwitz, Eliezer struggles to maintain his faith, bearing witness as the other prisoners lose faith and humanity.
The Hate U Give
by Angie Thomas
Genre: Novel
Themes: Racism and Police Brutality.
Grade Level: 12th Grade
Summary: In the book " The Hate U Give" Starr becomes entangled in a national news story after she witnesses a white police officer shoot and kill her childhood friend, Khalil. She speaks up about the shooting in increasingly public ways, and social tensions culminate in a riot after a grand jury decides not to indict the police officer for the shooting.
Making Our Way Home: The Great Migration and the Black American Dream
by: Blair Imani
Genre: Non Fiction
Grade Level: 7th grade and above
Themes: Politics, Domestic terrorism, Discrimination, and Segregation
Summary: The book "Making Our Way Home" explores issues like voting rights, domestic terrorism, discrimination, and segregation alongside the flourishing of arts and culture, activism, and civil rights. This book correlates with factors we as Americans today sometimes take for granted. This book describes the crucial hardships one faces.
Being Jazz My Life as a (Transgender) Teen
by: Jazz Jennings
Genre: Young Adult Non Fiction
Grade Level: 9-12 Grade
Themes: Bullying, Discrimination, and Rejection
Summary: Jazz Jennings is one of the youngest and most prominent voices in the national discussion about gender identity. At the age of five, Jazz transitioned to life as a girl, with the support of her parents. Jazz reflects on these very public experiences and how they have helped shape the mainstream attitude toward the transgender community. But it hasn't all been easy. Jazz has faced many challenges, bullying, discrimination, and rejection, yet she perseveres as she educates others about her life as a transgender teen. Through it all, her family has been beside her on this journey, standing together against those who don't understand the true meaning of tolerance and unconditional love. Now Jazz must learn to navigate the physical, social, and emotional upheavals of adolescence—particularly high school—complicated by the unique challenges of being a transgender teen.