Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Teens Should Be Required to Read

Hey ya'll! So today is a good day for two reasons: Firstly, it's the 2nd day of me & the honeyman's 4 Year Anniversary! (Yes, our anniversary is actually 3 days long... I'll tell that story some other time). So you know, yay :-) Secondly, it's time for Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. This week's topic is awesome, and I might have trouble limiting myself to only ten picks... it's Ten Books That Should Be Required Reading for Teens.

(Also it should be noted that while a lot of these books are suggested reading for teens now, I never read any of them in school. How the hell that happened, I have no idea.)

1. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card: This book is kind of kick-ass. In a world where kids are trained for battle, Ender himself stands out. I'd make kids read this to teach them to be compassionate and nice, but to defend themselves against bullies. I think the issue of bullies today is really being blow out of proportion, but this book shows what you should do if another kid is beating you for no reason.

2. Beauty Queens by Libba Bray: I just recently read this book, and am obsessed with how much I love it. I think it'd be an important read for teen girls, and it addresses so many issues - beauty, race, gender identity, sexuality, pressure from parents and society, etc... and I think it'd be interesting to see what teen boys could learn from it.

3. The Autobiography of Malcolm X: An awesome book about a really important civil rights figure. Middle schools annoyingly tend to skip Malcolm X and instead harp on and on about MLK Jr., so by the time teens get to high school they should be able to learn about another side of the same issues. Also, one of the best autobiographies I've ever read. It's interesting, thought-provoking, and really illuminating.

4. any Jane Austen book: I wasn't exposed to Austen until I was 22 or something crazy like that. Instead of high schools trying to focus on Shakespeare, they should go the route of Austen instead and leave Shakespeare for college students. That way they're still exposing teens to classic lit and an older version of language, but it's just easier. Plus, it would give the teen boys a hint to be more like the Austen heroes :-)

5. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee: Do I really even need to explain this one?

6. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury: A good and really interesting book about what it'd be like to live in a world where you aren't allowed to read books. Hopefully will give the teens an appreciation for books and the ability to read them.

7. Anthem by Ayn Rand: Yes, Rand is kind of a controversial author. But I think that for teens, this could be a really important read. It's about someone living in a uniform society, where everyone is the same, and discovering the idea that he is an individual.

8. 1984 by George Orwell: Can you tell yet that I'm a big fan of teens reading classics and dystopians?

9. Einstein's Dreams by Alan Lightman: One of my high school teachers gave me this book to read, and stupidly I ignored him. I read it like 7 years later, and it was really good. Definitely makes you contemplate time and such, and I think it'd be good to get more teens thinking about complex scientific issues.

10. The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula le Guin: About a visitor coming to a planet where there are no genders. Can you even contemplate what it would be like to live in a genderless society? Exactly.

OKAY, I have to go over ten... these are some others that should be suggested reading for teens... Harry Potter, The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, The Giver by Lois Lowry (duh), The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, Lamb by Christopher Moore, The Princess Bride by William Goldman... okay I think I've run out of steam now.

Also... here are the books that I think teens should NEVER be subjected to. Why some of them are forced on high school kids, I'll never know.

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton: The only book I've ever read that makes a very good case FOR adultery, and it has possibly the stupidest suicide method ever.

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger: Ohmygod, I think teens are whiny enough, thank you very much. Although maybe this would give them a taste of their own medicine and make them less whiny. Hmmm....

Moby Dick by Herman Melville: Unless you want teens to end up hating reading, of course.

Go Ask Alice by "Anonymous": This is so obviously some adult trying to scare kids away from drugs. And I hate to tell you, but teens are not stupid enough to swallow this crap. I read it in high school and was insulted that my teachers thought I would believe such a blatant scare tactic.


Anyways, what do you think teens should or should not be required to read?