Books US schools assign, by theme

A different angle on the canon: what the books are about. Themes like friendship, coming-of-age, racism, and the Holocaust appear across grades and curricula — these pages collect them. Each theme page lists the books that explore it, with grade levels, Lexile ranges, and primary-source citations.

• family
  160 books on file
• friendship
  136 books on file
• identity
  98 books on file
• courage
  81 books on file
• humor
  52 books on file
• nature
  35 books on file
• perseverance
  35 books on file
• adventure
  34 books on file
• mystery
  32 books on file
• survival
  31 books on file
• school
  27 books on file
• grief
  26 books on file
• history
  26 books on file
• growing up
  25 books on file
• imagination
  25 books on file
• coming of age
  20 books on file
• resilience
  20 books on file
• justice
  19 books on file
• race
  16 books on file
• immigration
  15 books on file
• war
  15 books on file
• love
  14 books on file
• memory
  14 books on file
• power
  14 books on file
• animals
  13 books on file
• loyalty
  13 books on file
• belonging
  12 books on file
• community
  12 books on file
• disability
  12 books on file
• science
  12 books on file
• freedom
  11 books on file
• kindness
  11 books on file
• biography
  10 books on file
• bullying
  10 books on file
• Holocaust
  8 books on file
• loss
  8 books on file
• mental health
  8 books on file
• art
  7 books on file
• class
  7 books on file
• hope
  7 books on file
• intelligence
  7 books on file
• mortality
  7 books on file
• poverty
  7 books on file
• racism
  7 books on file
• sacrifice
  7 books on file
• ambition
  6 books on file
• empathy
  6 books on file
• fantasy
  6 books on file
• ghosts
  6 books on file
• magic
  6 books on file
• marriage and class
  6 books on file
• American Dream
  5 books on file
• destiny
  5 books on file
• education
  5 books on file
• fear
  5 books on file
• gender
  5 books on file
• good vs evil
  5 books on file
• independence
  5 books on file
• mythology
  5 books on file
• prejudice
  5 books on file
• religion
  5 books on file
• responsibility
  5 books on file
• social class
  5 books on file
• anxiety
  4 books on file
• colonialism
  4 books on file
• determination
  4 books on file
• dragons
  4 books on file
• everyday life
  4 books on file
• forgiveness
  4 books on file
• healing
  4 books on file
• illusion and reality
  4 books on file
• individuality
  4 books on file
• language and thought
  4 books on file
• music
  4 books on file
• refugees
  4 books on file
• siblings
  4 books on file
• voice and silence
  4 books on file
• Chinese-American experience
  3 books on file
• Great Depression
  3 books on file
• activism
  3 books on file
• aging
  3 books on file
• betrayal
  3 books on file
• change
  3 books on file
• childhood
  3 books on file
• choice
  3 books on file
• civil rights
  3 books on file
• code-switching
  3 books on file
• compassion
  3 books on file
• conformity
  3 books on file
• creativity
  3 books on file
• deception
  3 books on file
• disillusionment
  3 books on file
• fate
  3 books on file
• father-son relationships
  3 books on file
• fatherhood
  3 books on file
• folklore
  3 books on file
• gratitude
  3 books on file
• heroism
  3 books on file
• identity and reputation
  3 books on file
• journey
  3 books on file
• madness
  3 books on file
• middle school
  3 books on file
• morality
  3 books on file
• mother-daughter relationship
  3 books on file
• neurodiversity
  3 books on file
• racial injustice
  3 books on file
• reputation
  3 books on file
• resistance
  3 books on file
• revenge
  3 books on file
• revolution
  3 books on file
• science and ethics
  3 books on file
• storytelling
  3 books on file
• words
  3 books on file