Grade Level: High School

The Ping-Pong Queen of Chinatown

Felix Ma, a high school junior, invites Cassie Chow, a senior, to star in his short film as an excuse to see her more. What begins as a lighthearted project turns serious when Felix’s college admissions coach suggests using it for essay material, leading to a drama about the emotional impact of parental expectations.
Everything I Learned About Racism I Learned in School

This nonfiction narrative explores Tiffany Jewell’s experiences from elementary school through college, examining systemic racism in the American educational system. It includes various personal narratives and stories from children’s and YA writers of the global majority, aimed at empowering future generations.
Charming as a Verb

Henri, a popular debater at a prestigious New York City private school, is charming to everyone except Corrine Troy, who blackmails him to help change her image. Henri’s ambition to attend Columbia University is threatened as he navigates this challenge.
We Regret to Inform You

Mischa Abramavicius, a high school student with a perfect college application, is rejected by all Ivy League schools and even her safety school. As she grapples with the future, she suspects her transcript might have been hacked and teams up with computer-savvy classmates to uncover the truth.
These High School Students Are Shaping The Future Of Diversity, Equity And Inclusion

Grade: High School/Middle SchoolThe Forbes article about the Junior Economic Club of New York, “a student-run organization that aims to educate and motivate future leaders. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic as a way of teaching high school students to become the leaders of tomorrow, a living demonstration of how DEI can be integrated into…
Reading Fun for Summer and All Year Round

In 2025, let’s celebrate the joy of reading books that reflect who we are — our backgrounds, interests, personalities, and ways of thinking. Explore stories about people who inspire you, characters who bring you joy, and voices that open up new perspectives. Enjoy books that speak to your heart, spark your curiosity, and make you…
DEIB Reading Fun for Summer and All Year Round

September 21, 2024 For many years, the majority of books were written by white authors about white characters. Within the last ten years, publishers have been accepting more books that incorporate Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) by diverse authors. The publishing world is still not completely equitable in its choice of what is published,…
Give Me a Sign

Jenny Han meets CODA in this big-hearted YA debut about first love and Deaf pride at a summer camp. Lilah is stuck in the middle. At least, that’s what having a hearing loss seems like sometimes—when you don’t feel “deaf enough” to identify as Deaf or hearing enough to meet the world’s expectations. But this…
Dragonfruit

In the old tales, it is written that the egg of a seadragon, dragonfruit, holds within it the power to undo a person’s greatest sorrow. Every wish demands a price in this Pacific Islander tale.
Throwback

Sam travels back in time to the 1990s where she must figure out how to fix things with her Korean American mother. “Throwback asks big questions about what exactly one inherits and loses in the immigrant experience.”
Ruth Asawa: An Artist Takes Shape

Known for her innovative wire sculptures; Japanese American artist Ruth Asawa was a teenager in Southern California when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. Her father was incarcerated, and the rest of her family were sent to a detention center in California, and later to an internment camp in Arkansas. A few years later she was accepted…
Home Is Not a Country

From the acclaimed poet featured on Forbes Africa’s “30 Under 30” list, this powerful novel-in-verse captures one girl, caught between cultures, on an unexpected journey to face the ephemeral girl she might have been. Woven through with moments of lyrical beauty, this is a tender meditation on family, belonging, and home. Nima wishes she were…