When it comes to literature, teaching the classics is important. But it's a good idea to add contemporary titles to your curriculum, too, especially if your students sometimes have trouble connecting with older texts.
That’s why we created the Discovering Literature collection, a curated selection of noteworthy books that are capturing the attention of teachers and students across the country.
In this month’s Discovering Literature Digest, you’ll find moving stories by authors of color that tackle universal themes of self-confidence, friendship, bravery, and family.
After the Shot Drops
Told from alternating perspectives, After the Shot Drops is a powerful novel about responsibility, friendship, compassion, and basketball. Bunny and Nasir are best friends, but everything changes when Bunny accepts an athletic scholarship at the private school across town. There, Bunny struggles to fit in with his privileged peers. Feeling abandoned, Nasir spends time with his cousin Wallace, who is ostracized by his family because of his gambling problem. But when Wallace makes a high-stakes bet against Bunny, Nasir questions where his loyalties lie.
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Genesis Begins Again
Perfect for middle-grade readers, Genesis Begins Again tells the story of one girl’s endeavor to overcome colorism and an abusive family to finally learn to love herself. Thirteen-year-old Genesis blames herself for her problems. Her father has a gambling addiction, causing the family to be continually evicted from their home. Her mother looks down on her dark skin, saying Genesis isn’t “light enough.” Genesis is determined to fix her family, even if it means harming herself in the process. But when Genesis starts to find things she actually likes about herself, she discovers that changing her own attitude is the first step in changing that of others.
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Pet
Winner of the Stonewall Book Award, Pet is a genre-defying novel that deftly tackles themes of identity and justice. There are no monsters in the utopian city of Lucille. Jam, a transgender girl, and her friend Redemption have grown up with that lesson. But when Jam meets a ghastly creature named Pet, she must reconsider what she's been taught. Pet has come to hunt a true monster—and something grim lurks in Redemption's house. Jam must fight not only to protect her friend, but also to find the answer to the question: How do you save the world from monsters if everyone denies they exist?
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Butterfly Yellow
In the last days of the Viet Nam War, Hang’s little brother, Linh, is taken away to America as part of Operation Babylift, leaving Hang behind. Six years later, Hang journeys from Viet Nam to Texas in search of Linh. At first, Hang is overjoyed when she reunites with Linh. But when she realizes he doesn’t remember her, their family, or Viet Nam, her heart is crushed. Though the distance between them feels greater than ever, Hang will do anything to help bridge the gap. Winner of the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, Butterfly Yellow is a deeply moving story of family, friendship, and identity.
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Find even more exciting books in the Discovering Literature collection!