Contemporary Classics

Xiomara hides her poetry from her religious family, but when she joins a slam poetry club, she must decide whether or not she's ready for her voice to be heard. Learn these words from the acclaimed novel-in-verse by slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo.

In Nic Stone's unflinching exploration of racism, high school student Justyce McAllister writes letters to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in order to process the violence and prejudice he encounters in his community.

In this novel-in-verse, Will spends a sixty-second elevator ride weighing whether or not he should avenge his brother's death. Learn these words from Jason Reynolds's innovative and powerful exploration of gun violence.

A talented artist and student, Jade looks for ways that she can give back to her community — but she feels like her teachers view her only as an "at risk" teenager rather than seeing her for who she truly is.

In a series of autobiographical poems, Jacqueline Woodson vividly brings her childhood and adolescence to life. This memoir in verse won the National Book Award, the Coretta Scott King Award, and the Newbery Honor Award.

In this graphic novel, an African-American seventh grader struggles to fit in at his new private school.

Twin brothers Josh and Jordan Bell clash both on and off the basketball court. How high can you score on this list of words from Alexander's award-winning novel in verse?

In this novel, a 12-year-old boy uses his passion for building to come to terms with his brother's death.

In this hilarious novel, 13-year-old Nate sneaks off to New York City to audition for a role in a Broadway play. Learn this list in which the vocabulary from the novel takes center stage. Break a leg!

The lives of four children (and a guinea pig named Gulliver) intersect in unexpected ways in this Newbery Medal-winning book.

Twelve-year-old Malú loves punk rock, but her mother and the strict principal at her new school definitely do not. With the help of her fellow "misfits," Malú fights to express who she truly is.

Louise Wolfe, a Native American teen, gets caught up in controversy (and an unexpected romance) when she and other school newspaper reporters pursue a big story.

Struggling with his sense of identity, a biracial teen decides to spend the summer with his family in Mexico.

This novel is narrated by a ten-year-old boy who did not survive the Trail of Tears, the forced resettlement of Native Americans during the 19th century.