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50 Books to Read in High School

The 50 Books to Read in High School list was created by the Lexington Public Library staff in response to frequent questions regarding the best books for high school students.  The 50 Books to Read in High School is a list generated by the teen services team with input from librarians from the Fayette County Public Schools.  The list is intended to either reflect the life experiences of local teenagers, or to broaden your world view.  On this list, you’ll find classics as well as cultural phenomena, and you may find something you wouldn’t have immediately picked out for yourself. Read them and share what you think with your friends, teachers and, of course, your favorite librarians!

 Following is an alphabetical list by author of all 50 titles. 


  1. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy     [2]
    by Douglas Adams (TEEN FIC ADAMS)
     

  2. The Book of Three     [3]
    by Lloyd Alexander (TEEN FIC ALEXA)
     

  3. Speak     [4]
    by Laurie Halse Anderson (TEEN FIC ANDER)
     

  4. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings     [5]
    by Maya Angelou (TEEN B An43a1)
     

  5. Go Ask Alice     [6]
    by Anonymous (TEEN 362.29 An79g)
     

  6. Thirteen Reasons Why     [7]
    by Jay Asher (TEEN FIC ASHER)
     

  7. Pride and Prejudice     [8]
    by Jane Austen (TEEN FIC AUSTE)
     

  8. Fahrenheit 451     [9]
    by Ray Bradbury (TEEN FIC BRADB)
     

  9. Ender’s Game         [10]
    by Orson Scott Card (TEEN FIC CARD)
     

  10. The Perks of Being a Wallflower     [11]
    by Stephen Chbosky (TEEN FIC CHBOS)
     

  11. Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist         [12]
    by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan (TEEN FIC COHN)
     

  12. The Hunger Games         [13]
    by Suzanne Collins (TEEN FIC COLLI)
     

  13. Whale Talk     [14]
    by Chris Crutcher (TEEN FIC CRUTC)
     

  14. Just Listen     [15]
    by Sarah Dessen (TEEN FIC DESSE)
     

  15. Little Brother         [16]
    by Cory Doctorow (TEEN FIC DOCTO)
     

  16. Tears of a Tiger     [17]
    by Sharon Draper (TEEN FIC DRAPE)
     

  17. The Diary of a Young Girl         [18]
    by Anne Frank (TEEN B F851a4)
     

  18. The Sandman:  Preludes & Nocturnes         [19]
    by Neil Gaiman (TEEN 741.5 SANDM)
     

  19. Lord of the Flies         [20]
    by William Golding (TEEN FIC GOLDI)
     

  20. The Princess Bride     [21]
    by William Goldman (TEEN FIC GOLDM)
     

  21. Looking for Alaska     [22]
    by John Green (TEEN FIC GREEN)
     

  22. Black Like Me         [23]
    by John Howard Griffin (TEEN B G8757a1)
     

  23. The Outsiders     [24]
    by S. E. Hinton (TEEN FIC HINTO)
     

  24. Crank     [25]
    by Ellen Hopkins (TEEN FIC HOPKI)
     

  25. The First Part Last     [26]
    by Angela Johnson (TEEN FIC JOHNS)
     

  26. Flowers for Algernon     [27]
    by Daniel Keyes (TEEN FIC KEYES)
     

  27. The Secret Life of Bees         [28]
    by Sue Monk Kidd (TEEN FIC KIDD)
     

  28. To Kill a Mockingbird         [29]
    by Harper Lee (TEEN FIC LEE)
     

  29. A Wrinkle in Time         [30]
    by Madeleine L’Engle (TEEN FIC LENGL)
     

  30. Sold     [31]
    by Patricia McCormick (TEEN FIC MCCOR)
     

  31. Twilight     [32]
    By Stephenie Meyer (TEEN FIC MEYER)
     

  32. Gone with the Wind     [33]
    by Margaret Mitchell (TEEN FIC MITCH)
     

  33. Monster         [34]
    by Walter Dean Myers (TEEN FIC MYERS)
     

  34. 1984     [35]
    by George Orwell (TEEN FIC ORWEL)
     

  35. A Child Called It     [36]
    by Dave Pelzer (TEEN 362.76 P369c)
     

  36. The Bell Jar         [37]
    by Sylvia Plath (TEEN FIC PLATH)
     

  37. The Catcher in the Rye     [38]
    by J. D. Salinger (TEEN FIC SALIN)
     

  38. Persepolis         [39]
    by Marjane Satrapi (TEEN 741.5944 PERSE)
     

  39. Fast Food Nation     [40]
    by Eric Schlosser (TEEN 394.10973 Sch39f)
     

  40. Romeo and Juliet         [41]
    by William Shakespeare (TEEN 822.33 U3ss)
     

  41. For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide, When the Rainbow is Enuf     [42]
    by Ntozake Shange (TEEN 811.54 Sh18f)

  1. Frankenstein     [43]
    by Mary Shelley (TEEN FIC SHELL)
     

  2. Maus I     [44]
    by Art Spiegelman (TEEN 940.5315 Sp43m)
     

  3. The Grapes of Wrath     [45]
    by John Steinbeck (TEEN FIC STEIN)
     

  4. The Fellowship of the Ring         [46]
    by J. R. R. Tolkien (TEEN FIC TOLKI)
     

  5. A Streetcar Named Desire         [47]
    by Tennessee Williams (TEEN 812.54 W675s)
     

  6. Native Son         [48]
    by Richard Wright (TEEN FIC WRIGHT)
     

  7. Funny How Things Change         [49]
    by Melissa Wyatt (TEEN FIC WYATT)
     

  8. American Born Chinese     [50]
    by Gene Luen Yang (TEEN 741.5 YANG)
     

  9. The Book Thief     [51]
    by Markus Zusak (TEEN FIC ZUSAK)
Source URL: http://www.lexpublib.org/50BooksInHighschool

Links:
[1] http://www.lexpublib.org/sites/default/files/50_Books_To_Read_In_High_School.pdf
[2] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=search&term=The%20Hitchhiker%E2%80%99s%20Guide%20to%20the%20Galaxy&dbTab=ls2pac
[3] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=search&term=The%20Book%20of%20Three&dbTab=ls2pac
[4] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=5262395&currentIndex=0
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[14] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=3933950&currentIndex=0
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[22] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=1590368&currentIndex=1
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[24] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=3956292&currentIndex=1
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[27] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=8070766&currentIndex=0
[28] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=3310065&currentIndex=0
[29] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=3629562&currentIndex=7
[30] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=2529656&currentIndex=1
[31] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=2043789&currentIndex=0
[32] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=1176867&currentIndex=9
[33] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=5343073&currentIndex=1
[34] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=4001513&currentIndex=1
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[40] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=8483047&currentIndex=0
[41] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=search&term=Romeo%20and%20Juliet%20&dbTab=ls2pac
[42] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=438266&currentIndex=0
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[49] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=3580491&currentIndex=0
[50] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=1500143&currentIndex=0
[51] http://catalog.lexpublib.org/#section=resource&resourceid=4881616&currentIndex=0