Learning to speak up for yourself is hard to do! Hoin the Nigerian protagonist as she learns to find her "louding voice" and speak her own truth.

👍 Recommended for African Studies

When teenager Luke Ellis wakes up one morning, he finds himself in a windowless room far from his Minneapolis home. He soon discovers that he now lives in the “Front Half” of the Institute, a sinister compound where adults abduct children with paranormal gifts and seek to extract their abilities. Even more nefarious is the “Back Half” where children myste riously disappear at random. Luke soon learns that he not only needs to get out, but that he needs to get help to free his friends Kalish, Nick, George, Iris and Avery from the clutches of the director, Mrs. Sigbsby. There is one problem: no one has yet escaped the Institute.

👍 Recommended by NAG

Imagine your life turned upside down by a shift in political power. In this famous and heartbreaking memoir, Elie Wiesel tells of his journey from his home in Transylvania to Auschwitz, a prison camp of the Nazi regime during World War II. “Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night.”

Written in 1948, this futuristic dystopian novel is set in a society ruled by a terrifyingly totalitarian regime. Winston Smith longs for human connection and a sense of selfhood while he struggles to maintain original thought in a world hell bent on erasing individuality. The novel addresses many contemporary issues such as privacy, technology and a government’s responsibilities in such a way that some have called it prophetic. Would you give up your personal freedoms to ensure your country’s safety?

👍 Recommended by Salaam

“Sometimes it seems like writing is the only way I keep from hurting.” Xiomara Batista feels like she is not truly seen, nor heard, and so she writes. She writes elaborate, gut-wrenching poems that speak to the ocean of feelings inside. Outside, she is trying to ignore the guys verbally assaulting her, trying to be the good Christian girl her mom wants her to be and all the while the words come. This book is a fast read because it’s all poetry, capturing Xiomara’s every moment in verse. If you like Angie Thomas’s On the Come Up, you will love this book.

👍 Recommended by SHADES

Did you know that the octopus can problem solve? Did you know they have personality in addition to eight bendy arms and the ability to bounce balls, change color and trick other octopuses? Us neither. This nonfiction book is filled with heart, science and intelligence.