Classics for Teens

Classic literature appropriate for a teenaged audience, while also enjoyable for adult readers.
Updated January 16, 2023
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Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Mark Twain
Paper Book
"All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn," Ernest Hemingway wrote, "It's the best book we've had."nbsp;nbsp;A complex masterpiece that has spawned volumes of scholarly exegesis and interpretative theories, it is at heart a compelling adventure...
The Call of the Wild
Jack London
Paper Book
The world's best-loved stories brought to life in the full context of their eras: The Whole Story series, with its unique documentary approach, makes the classics accessible to new generations of readers-as well as to audiences wanting to reread, rediscover, and newly appreciate these enduringly...
The Catcher in the Rye
J. D. Salinger
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...
The Color Purple
Alice Walker
Paper Book
The Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that tells the story of two sisters through their correspondence. With a new Preface by the author.
The Great Gatsby
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Paper Book
The only edition of the beloved classic that is authorized by Fitzgerald's family and from his lifelong publisher. This edition is the enduring original text, updated with the author's own revisions, a foreword by his granddaughter, and with a new introduction by National Book...
The House on Mango Street
Sandra Cisneros
Paper Book
The House on Mango Street is the remarkable story of Esperanza Cordero, a young Latina girl growing up in Chicago, inventing for herself who and what she will become. Told in a series of vignettes-sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes deeply joyous-Sandra Cisneros' masterpiece is a classic story...
Lord of the Flies
William Golding
Paper Book
Golding's iconic 1954 novel, now with a new foreword by Lois Lowry, remains one of the greatest books ever written for young adults and an unforgettable classic for readers of any age.   This edition includes a new Suggestions for Further Reading by Jennifer Buehler. ...
Of Mice and Men
John Steinbeck
Paper Book
A controversial tale of friendship and tragedy during the Great Depression "A thriller, a gripping tale . . . that you will not set down until it is finished. Steinbeck has touched the quick." --The New York Times John Steinbeck's classic novella follows an...
The Lottery and Other Stories
Shirley Jackson
Paper Book
Beautifully repackaged as part of the Picador Modern Classics series, this special edition is small enough to fit in your pocket and bold enough to stand out on your bookshelf. One of the most terrifying stories of the twentieth century, Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" created...
Nineteen Eighty-Four
George Orwell
Paper Book
Written 75 years ago, 1984 was George Orwell's chilling prophecy about the future. And while 1984 has come and gone, his dystopian vision of a government that will do anything to control the narrative is timelier than ever... This 75th Anniversary Edition includes:*...
On the Road
Jack Kerouac
Paper Book
The legendary novel of freedom and the search for authenticity that defined a generation, now in a striking new Pengiun Classics Deluxe Edition  Inspired by Jack Kerouac's adventures with Neal Cassady, On the Road tells the story of two friends whose cross-country...
To Kill a Mockingbird
Harper Lee
Paper Book
The unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy Southern town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it, To Kill A Mockingbird became both an instant bestseller and a critical success when it was first published in 1960. It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was later made...
Night
Elie Wiesel
Paper Book
A new translation from the French by Marion Wiesel. Night is Elie Wiesel's masterpiece, a candid, horrific, and deeply poignant autobiographical account of his survival as a teenager in the Nazi death camps. This new translation by Marion Wiesel, Elie's wife and frequent...
Their Eyes Were Watching God
Zora Neale Hurston
Paper Book
A PBS Great American Read Top 100 Pick "A deeply soulful novel that comprehends love and cruelty, and separates the big people from the small of heart, without ever losing sympathy for those unfortunates who don't know how to live properly." --Zadie Smith One of the most important...
Fahrenheit 451
Ray Bradbury
Paper Book
For use in schools and libraries only. A totalitarian regime has ordered all books to be destroyed, but one of the book burners suddenly realizes their merit.
Black Boy
Richard Wright
Paper Book
With an introduction by Jerry W. Ward, Jr. Black Boy is a classic of American autobiography, a subtly crafted narrative of Richard Wright' s journey from innocence to experience in the Jim Crow South. An enduring story of one young man' s coming off age during a particular time and place, Black Boy...

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