NCEA Independent Reading (YA)

If you’re studying English at high school, there may be times when your teacher optimistically expects you to magically find a whole bunch of books (or other media) to write personal or critical responses to. You may even have to read them independently. And then demonstrate you had thoughts about them. We know, it seems inhumane.

Thankfully, the library is here to help! Our librarians have passionately argued their cases* and come up with this list of books — some classic and some new — that would be a fantastic starting point for any NCEA student looking for great texts to include in their Independent Reading assignments. They are arranged in approximate order of complexity, with texts more suited to Level 1 English at the top of the list, and texts more suited to Level 2 at the bottom.

*The impassioned debate would have continued for many more hours, were it not for the summary defenestration of one librarian for daring to suggest that The Hunger Games was ‘too mainstream’ to include on this list.

Updated June 19, 2024
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Wellington City Libraries Youth team at Wellington City Libraries
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Lord of the flies
Golding, William
Paper Book
This dystopian classic, which has sold over 25 million copies, is 'exciting, relevant and thought-provoking' (Stephen King). When a group of schoolboys are stranded on a desert island, what could go wrong? 'One of my favorite books - I...
The giver
Lowry, Lois.
Paper Book
The Giver, the 1994 Newbery Medal winner, has become one of the most influential novels of our time. The haunting story centers on twelve-year-old Jonas, who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. Not until he is given his life assignment as the...
The day of the Triffids
Wyndham, John
Paper Book
In 1951 John Wyndham published his novel The Day of the Triffids to moderate acclaim. Fifty-two years later, this horrifying story is a science fiction classic, touted by The Times (London) as having "all the reality of a vividly realized nightmare."Bill Masen, bandages over his wounded eyes, misses...
Jurassic Park
Crichton, Michael
Paper Book
An astonishing technique for recovering and cloning dinosaur DNA has been discovered. Creatures once extinct now roam Jurassic Park, soon-to-be opened as a theme park. Until something goes wrong...and science proves a dangerous toy.... "Wonderful...Powerful." THE WASHINGTON POST BOOK...
The Hunger Games
Collins, Suzanne.
Paper Book
The first novel in the worldwide bestselling series by Suzanne Collins! Winning means fame and fortune. Losing means certain death. The Hunger Games have begun. . . . In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve...
Othello
Shakespeare, William
Paper Book
The Annotated Shakespeare Series allows readers to fully understand and enjoy the rich plays of the world's greatest dramatist   "A drama . . . get[s] Yale's red-carpet treatment."--Library Journal   One of the most...
A thousand splendid suns
Hosseini, Khaled
Paper Book
Propelled by the same superb instinct for storytelling that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, the #1 New York Times bestseller A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once an incredible chronicle of thirty years of Afghan history and a deeply moving story of family,...
The war of the worlds
Wells, H. G.
Paper Book
The night after a shooting star is seen streaking through the sky from Mars, a cylinder is discovered on Horsell Common in London. At first, naive locals approach the cylinder armed just with a white flag - only to be quickly killed by an all-destroying heat-ray, as terrifying tentacled invaders...
Looking for Alaska : a novel
Green, John
Paper Book
The award-winning, genre-defining debut from John Green, the #1 bestselling author of The Anthropocene Reviewed and The Fault in Our StarsWinner of the Michael L. Printz Award * A Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist * A New York Times...
30 queer lives : conversations with LGBTQIA+ New Zealanders
McEvoy, Matt
Paper Book
Soldiers, politicians, Olympians, doctors, musicians, academics, businesspeople, farmers, writers and fa'afafine . . . the thirty LGBTQIA+ New Zealanders in this book are remarkable individuals. They each speak with candour and honesty about their challenges and successes, and together they show...
Protest! : shaping Aotearoa
Hager, Mandy
Paper Book
A look at protest in New Zealand, what was it about, who did it and were they successful? Starting with Hone Heke and encompassing Parehaka to the land march, from votes for women to the nuclear test ban. Culminating in the climate change marches.
From here to eternity : traveling the world to find the good death
Doughty, Caitlin
Paper Book
A New York Times and Los Angeles Times Bestseller The best-selling author of Smoke Gets in Your Eyes expands our sense of what it means to treat the dead with "dignity." Fascinated by our pervasive fear of dead bodies, mortician Caitlin Doughty set...
The crossing
Hager, Mandy.
Paper Book
The first book in the stunning Blood of the Lamb trilogy, full of action, suspense and drama. The Crossing is the first book in a stunning trilogy that follows the fate of Maryam and her unlikely companions - Joseph, Ruth and Lazarus. This is fast, suspenseful drama...
The 57 bus
Slater, Dashka
Paper Book
A NEW YORK TIMES Bestseller Stonewall Book Award Winner A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the 21st Century (So Far) The riveting New York Times bestseller and Stonewall Book Award winner that will make you rethink all you...
The knife of never letting go
Ness, Patrick
Paper Book
A dystopian thriller follows a boy and girl on the run from a town where all thoughts can be heard — and the passage to manhood embodies a horrible secret. Todd Hewitt is the only boy in a town of men. Ever since the settlers were infected with the Noise germ, Todd can hear...
Thief of time
Pratchett, Terry
Paper Book
"Philosophical humor of the highest order." -- Kirkus Reviews Time itself is threatened--and it's up to the History Monks to save it in this hilarious installment in Sir Terry Pratchett's bestselling Discworld series. Everybody wants more time. Which is why, on Discworld, only the...
Am I black enough for you? : 10 years on
Heiss, Anita
Paper Book
I'm Aboriginal. I'm just not the Aboriginal person a lot of people want or expect me to be. What does it mean to be Aboriginal? Why is Australia so obsessed with notions of identity? Anita Heiss, successful author and passionate advocate for Aboriginal literacy, rights and...
Storm-wake
Christopher, Lucy
Paper Book
A tour de force retelling of The Tempest from a romantic, emotional, and inspiring voice, perfect for passionate readers of all ages."A tale of strange magic and faith lost and found that packs a wallop." --BooklistMoss has grown up on the strangest and most magical of islands....
Purple Hibiscus : a novel
Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi
Paper Book
"One of the most vital and original novelists of her generation." --Larissa MacFarquhar, The New Yorker From the bestselling author of Americanah and We Should All Be Feminists Fifteen-year-old Kambili and her older brother Jaja lead a...
The kite runner
Hosseini, Khaled
Paper Book
The #1 New York Times bestselling novel beloved by millions of readers the world over. "A vivid and engaging story that reminds us how long his people [of Afghanistan] have been struggling to triumph over the forces of violence--forces that continue to threaten them even today...
Frankenstein, or, The modern Prometheus
Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft
Paper Book
Obsessed by creating life itself, Victor Frankenstein plunders graveyards for the material to fashion a new being, which he shocks into life by electricity. But his botched creature, rejected by Frankenstein and denied human companionship, sets out to destroy his maker and all that he holds dear....
American gods : a novel : author's preferred text
Gaiman, Neil
Paper Book
"Mystery, satire, sex, horror, poetic prose....If you have enjoyed John Crowley's Little, Big or Stephen King's The Stand or the urbane horror fiction of Jonathan Carroll...then American Gods arrives just in time." --Washington Post "Dark fun, and nourishing to the soul."
Catch-22 : a novel
Heller, Joseph.
Paper Book
Presents the contemporary classic depicting the struggles of a U.S. airman attempting to survive the lunacy and depravity of a World War II base.
The catcher in the rye
Salinger, J. D.
Paper Book
The "brilliant, funny, meaningful novel" (The New Yorker) that established J. D. Salinger as a leading voice in American literature--and that has instilled in millions of readers around the world a lifelong love of books.     "If you...
Once were warriors
Duff, Alan
Paper Book
Once Were Warriors is Alan Duff's harrowing vision of his country's indigenous people two hundred years after the English conquest. In prose that is both raw and compelling, it tells the story of Beth Heke, a Maori woman struggling to keep her family from falling apart, despite the squalor and...
The song of Achilles
Miller, Madeline
Paper Book
A New York Times Bestseller "At once a scholar's homage to The Iliad and startlingly original work of art....A book I could not put down." --Ann Patchett, author of The Dutch House A thrilling, profoundly moving, and utterly unique retelling of the...
The handmaid's tale
Atwood, Margaret
Paper Book
** THE SUNDAY TIMES NO. 1 BESTSELLER ** Go back to where it all began with the dystopian novel behind the award-winning TV series. 'The Handmaid's Tale changed me profoundly, hopefully for the better' Lee Child, Guardian
The left hand of darkness
Le Guin, Ursula K.
Paper Book
50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION--WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY DAVID MITCHELL AND A NEW AFTERWORD BY CHARLIE JANE ANDERS Ursula K. Le Guin's groundbreaking work of science fiction--winner of the Hugo and Nebula Awards. A lone human ambassador is sent to the icebound planet of...
Not that bad : dispatches from rape culture
Gay, Roxane
Paper Book
New York Times Bestseller "This is a devastating book, heartbreaking in how familiar and relatable each story is--yet there's power and solidarity in it, too."  -- Shondaland Edited and with an introduction by Roxane Gay, the New York...
Dreadnought
Daniels, April (Young adult author)
Paper Book
An action-packed series-starter perfect for fans of The Heroine Complex and Not Your Sidekick. "I didn't know how much I needed this brave, thrilling book until it rocked my world. Dreadnought is the superhero adventure we all need right now."--Charlie Jane...

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