itional themes of friendship and belonging, and brings the story to life through a graphic-novel styled book. Use El Deafo to introduce kids to concepts of deafness and difference, to talk about healthy friendships, or if you just need a good giggle!
Lola Levine Is Not Mean - Monica Brown (chapter book, middle elementary school)
Spunky Lola Levine just wants to play her favorite sport -- soccer! But when she gets a little too competitive at recess and accidentally injures her friend Juan, she must find a grown-up way to deal with the unpleasant consequences.
In this charming chapter book series, Monica Brown brings Lola Levine to life. This pick made my list because of the wonderfully casual way Brown weaves in Lola’s multi-ethnic Jewish and Latina identity, emphasizing its importance to Lola without making it a source of tension in the plot.
The Witch Boy - Molly Ostertag (middle school, graphic novel)
In a hidden world of shapeshifters and witches, Aster finds himself stuck in the middle. Despite the pressures of tradition all around him to grow into his shapeshifting powers, Aster can’t help but be drawn to the teachings of witchcraft. But there’s one big barrier: magic is only meant for girls.
As a long-time fan of Molly Ostertag, I was over-the-moon excited about this beautifully drawn gender-binary breaking story. Not only does it offer kids and teens representation of gender role exploration, but it acts as a mirror for adults to examine their own implicit biases about gender that they might be imposing on the Asters in their classrooms and homes.
Does My Head Look Big in This? - Randa Abdel-Fattah (middle school, novel)
When sixteen-year-old Amal decides to wear the hijab full time, she is faced with an onslaught of opinions, reactions, and taunts. The biography follows Amal’s decision to stay true to her faith and her decision in the face of the minefield that is the social world of high school.
This novel explores issues of identity, growing up, and managing social interactions, all threaded together with Amal’s decision to wear the hijab. It brings the experience of a young, Muslim woman into focus in a way that many students, including myself, can relate to and learn from.
The Miseducation of Cameron Post - Emily Danforth (high school, novel)
When rough and tough Cameron Post’s bible-thumping aunt finds out that her feelings for girls run deeper than friendship, she sends her off to a conversion camp where Cameron is faced with the reality of her identity.
This book is near and dear to my heart. While a difficult read, it was the first book I read that was centered on a queer experience -- in fact, before this book, I didn’t know that queer characters existed in books at all. This moving story pushes readers of any sexuality to understand and empathize with a varied range of LGBTQIA+ realities.
The House on Mango Street - Sandra Cisneros (high school, novel)
Through vivid descriptions and lively vignettes, readers are pulled into the world of Esperanza as she grows up in her house on Mango Street. She faces the normal ebb and flow of getting older along with some of the harsher realities of her world.
The book was banned from many school curriculums, which automatically drew me to the story. The semi-autobiographical novel ultimately is a story of individuality and growing into yourself despite a harsh world of labeling, stereotyping, and even violence. This novel contains some graphic accounts of sexual assault, so giving students a proper warning is necessary when teaching this book.