High school is a time to read a multifaceted collection of literature, exposing students to a wide array of human cultures and experiences. In the past, the classical canon of high school books focused heavily on those written by—and often about—white men. While many of these novels still deserve to be (and are) on high school reading lists, it’s important to bring in modern novels with authors and perspectives that better reflect the diverse experiences of all.
To that end, we asked high school teachers to recommend their top non-canonical fiction for high school students. We’re sharing their favorite contemporary selections, along with some of the most popular classic novels too. While we’ve divided them into lists by grade, these are just suggestions. Choose the books that are right for your audience, regardless of where they fall on our list.
Be sure to grab a free printable list of these high school book recommendations to share with your students!
Jump to:
Contemporary High School Books for 9th Grade
Amazon
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Amid the horrors of war in Nazi Germany, young Liesel Meminger finds one way to cope: stealing forbidden books and sharing them with others. This gripping story has become a favorite for teens and adults alike in recent years.
When freshman Melinda is sexually assaulted while drunk at a party, she calls the cops to break up the party. Now everyone at school is mad at her for getting them busted, and Melinda has withdrawn into her own head, unable to speak at all. When she’s threatened with a repeat of her assault, Melinda must find a way to speak out at last.
This novel told in verse follows 15-year-old Will as he picks up a gun for the first time and heads out to avenge his oldest brother’s shooting death. As the elevator slowly carries him to the ground floor of his apartment building, each stop reveals a new angle on the realities of gun violence, forcing Will to think long and hard about what’s expected—and what’s right.
Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman, illustrated by Judy Pedersen
This unique novella captures the stories of a diverse urban community as they tend the bean seeds planted by an immigrant child. This is a terrific high-low choice, with text that’s easy to read but concepts that are complex enough for teens to explore.
Tough Xiomara (See-oh-MAH-ruh) is 15 and a first-generation Dominican American. To deal with harassment, she’s become known as a fighter, literally. With no support from her repressive and unstable family, Xiomara eventually finds healthier ways to express herself through poetry. As she competes in a poetry slam and begins a relationship with Aman, Xiomara slowly finds what she needs to survive her own challenging circumstances.
Santiago, a young Andalusian shepherd, dreams of discovering treasure in the Egyptian pyramids. Following his dreams, he journeys across the desert, meeting people like a king, a merchant, and an alchemist, each with their own lesson to teach him. This is a fairy tale/fable for teens, full of inspiration and the positive messages everyone needs at this age.
All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
White Quinn knows his Black friend Rashad wasn’t trying to steal a bag of chips, but that doesn’t stop a police officer from brutally beating the boy in an all-too-familiar act of police overreach. We hear the story of the attack and its repercussions in alternating voices from the two boys in this powerful book that sadly seems ripped from the headlines.
When aspiring teen filmmaker Steve is accused of murder, he writes his story the best way he knows how: as a script with accompanying journal entries. This style of writing will likely intrigue many teens who find reading a bit of a chore, as it cuts straight to the dialogue and action. The story itself is riveting, and, in a bold choice, the author leaves the ending up to the reader.
Thirteen-year-old Mississippi boy JoJo is becoming a man, but he’s not entirely sure what that even means to him. His white father is in prison, and his Black grandfather won’t even acknowledge his dad’s existence. When his father is released from prison and the family goes to pick him up, JoJo begins to see the ghost of another 13-year-old boy, who has another stark tale to share. Told in alternating voices, this road trip story paints a vivid picture of family life in the Deep South over three generations.
A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher
After a mysterious event kills off most people and leaves the majority of the rest unable to have children, teenage Griz is one of a few survivors. Living on an isolated Scottish island with his family and beloved dogs, he’s devastated when a stranger kidnaps one of the pups. Griz’s journey to bring him home again reveals the remains of a world that still contains the worst and best of humanity. Kirkus called this post-apocalyptic tale “un-put-downable.”
Sixteen-year-old Starr lives in two worlds: her urban Black neighborhood and the suburban mostly white prep school she attends. She struggles to walk the line between the two until the day she witnesses the shooting death of her (unarmed) childhood friend Khalil by a police officer. Public opinion, the media, and the courts paint very different pictures of the victim, and only Starr can tell the truth—if she can figure out the right things to say. Teachers today consider this a must-read novel for all teens.
Amir is the child of a wealthy family in Afghanistan during the 1960s when he befriends Hassan, the son of his father’s servant. Their relationship changes forever when Hassan is assaulted during a kite-fighting competition while Amir does nothing to stop it. As Amir grows up, this incident shapes his entire life. Set against the backdrop of the turbulent years of change in Afghanistan at the end of the 20th century, this story of redemption has become a beloved classic, one that launched Hosseini’s career.
Seventeen-year-old Zuri lives in Brooklyn with her loud, boisterous Haitian-Dominican family, and she’s proud of it all. When the wealthy Darcy family moves in across the street, she wants nothing to do with the snobby Darius, although her sister falls for older brother Ainsley. Over time, though, the two find more and more common ground, falling for each other in a relationship that might not be fated to end as well as Austen’s original classic.
Another popular high school book tackling police brutality, this one follows Justyce, a Black student who tries to do a good deed and finds himself the victim of a beat-down instead. This shocks him, as Justyce is a student at a mostly white prep school and considered himself different from “THOSE black guys.” Through a series of journal entries written as letters to his hero Dr. King, Justyce realizes that the way he views himself may not match up with the unfair stereotypes others hold to be true.
Kathy, Tommy, and Ruth lead a seemingly idyllic life at an elite boarding school. But as they grow into their teens, they realize they’re human clones, raised only for the purpose of “donating” their organs until they die. As each learns their own specific purpose, they must make choices and navigate their relationships with each other, knowing their lives may never really be their own to control. This dystopian novel won the Nobel Prize for Literature and asks pertinent questions about the sanctity of human life in an age of advanced technology.
The stories of 12 modern Native American characters intertwine in this engrossing novel, showing a community united and divided at the same time. As many of the characters prepare to join the Big Oakland Powwow, each confronts truths about their own lives and the devastating legacy of centuries of colonialism. Each of these “Urban Indians” has their own story and identity (making them just like every other American), and while their stories are influenced by their heritage, they also depend on personal ethics and choices.
Expose students to the conflict in Vietnam and the complexities of war with this collection of interconnected essays and short stories. The blend of fact and fiction encourages readers to consider the importance of storytelling as a way to process trauma and heal. The challenging themes are ideal for older students who are beginning to form their own moral and ethical guidelines for life.
Long before the smash hit streaming series, Atwood’s fascinating dystopian novel speculated on a future where women no longer had control over their own bodies. These days, it feels all-too-prescient. The streaming series is good, but pair it with the novel to truly understand the characters’ actions and motivations. Follow it up with the sequel, The Testaments, which provides fascinating backstories and resolution for many characters.
The Soviet occupation of Russia in the 1980s was bad for the nation as a whole, but allowed many women freedoms that had been prohibited for centuries. Even so, life was still incredibly challenging for women in a country deeply divided by morality and religion. Follow the stories of two women whose complex relationship exposes students to a culture many can never even begin to imagine.
In his Igbo village in Nigeria, Okonkwo spent years establishing his status as a respected warrior, as chronicled in part one of this stunning novel. When the British colonialists and Christian missions arrive, though, the villagers find themselves split. Okonkwo wishes to fight for his own culture, but even identifying the “enemy” is a challenge and eventually drives him away. When he returns after many years, he finds the Christian colonizers’ culture has thoroughly and irrevocably intertwined with his own. In the end, his sense of loss leads to the ultimate personal tragedy.
