“It was the first time I had seen a dark-skinned girl on the cover of a book and that absolutely enthralled me. When Amanda Gorman read The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison in eighth grade, she was inspired to become a writer. Another one for older kids, this is an authentic coming-of-age story with a fresh voice.īuy it: Hearts Unbroken on Amazon 6. Louise Wolfe is a Muscogee high schooler caught between family obligations and everything that being a teenager involves. Full of interviews and firsthand accounts, the story will keep even the most active students on the edge of their seats.īuy it: All Thirteen on Amazon 5. This book is a thrilling and information-packed true story of survival about the 2018 cave rescue in Thailand. All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue … by Christina Soontornvat Definitely for older kids-and definitely worth the conversations that follow.īuy it: The Hate U Give on Amazon 4.

This is the story of 16-year-old Starr Carter as she wrestles with her emotions after seeing her unarmed childhood friend killed by police, which has become a generational touchstone. This true story of Khosrou’s family and their escape from Iran in the middle of the night is an immediately gripping account of both middle school chaos and personal strife.īuy it: Everything Sad Is Untrue on Amazon 3. Khosrou is not like the other kids in his Oklahoma middle school, but he knows how to tell a story. Everything Sad Is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri Kendi’s National Book Award–winning Stamped From the Beginning is an urgent exploration of how the history of race affects us in the here and now, created for young people. We only recommend items our team loves!) Best Middle School Books 1. (Just a heads up, WeAreTeachers may collect a share of sales from the links on this page. Be sure to read the books first before you share them with your middle school students. Remember, maturity levels vary widely, and you know your students best.

Engaged students learn better, and you don’t need a canned curriculum from some corporation to tell you that.

Read some aloud to your students, give them audiobooks to listen to, or let them read one chapter at a time to each other. Not all middle school books have to be read silently or independently. Today’s classroom requires flexibility, especially with young readers. With that in mind, we revised our recommendations to be even more inclusive, with an eye toward middle school books you may not already have in your library. At the same time, challenges to what students are allowed to read in school have made some of their experiences even more marginalized than they had been. Middle school students faced plenty of issues before the social, political, and economic upheavals of the past few years.

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