There are a slew of excellent movies that take place at schools to help keep the back-to-school blues away, and we put together a list of books to read based on your favorite flick!
IF YOU LIKE Drumline TRY Blood At the Root by Ladarrion Williams
Ten years ago, Malik’s life changed forever the night his mother mysteriously vanished and he discovered he had uncontrollable powers. Since then, he has kept his abilities hidden, looking out for himself and his younger foster brother, Taye. Now, at 17, Malik is finally ready to start a new life for both of them, far from the trauma of his past. However, a daring act to rescue Taye reveals an unexpected connection with his long-lost grandmother: a legendary conjurer with ties to a hidden magical university that Malik’s mother attended. At Caiman University, Malik’s eyes are opened to a future he never could have envisioned for himself — one that includes the reappearance of his first love, Alexis. His search for answers about his heritage, his powers, and what really happened to his mother exposes the cracks in their magical community as it faces a reawakened evil dating back to the Haitian Revolution. Together with Alexis, Malik discovers a lot beneath the surface at Caiman: feuding covens and magical politics, forbidden knowledge and buried mysteries.
IF YOU LIKE The Perks of Being A Wallflower, TRY Looking For Alaska by John Green
Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words — and tired of his safe life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet François Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” Much awaits Miles at Culver Creek, including Alaska Young, who will pull Miles into her labyrinth and catapult him into the Great Perhaps.
IF YOU LIKE The Breakfast Club, TRY The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer
Six teenagers at a summer camp for the arts become inseparable, and while decades later the bond remains powerful, so much else has changed. Jules Jacobson, an aspiring comic actress, eventually resigns herself to a more practical occupation and lifestyle. Jonah stops playing the guitar and becomes an engineer. But Ethan and Ash, Jules’s now-married best friends, become shockingly successful — true to their initial artistic dreams, with the wealth and access that allow those dreams to keep expanding. The friendships endure and even prosper, but also underscore the differences in their fates.
IF YOU LIKE Booksmart, TRY Leah On the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli
Leah is an anomaly in her friend group: She’s the only child of a young, single mom, and her life is decidedly less privileged. She loves to draw but is too self-conscious to show it. And even though her mom knows she’s bisexual, she hasn’t mustered the courage to tell her friends. So Leah really doesn’t know what to do when her rock-solid friend group starts to fracture in unexpected ways. With prom and college on the horizon, tensions are running high.
IF YOU LIKE Clueless, TRY Kamila Knows Best by Farah Heron
Kamila’s life is filled with her elaborate Bollywood movie parties, a dog with more Instagram followers than most reality stars, a job she loves, and an endless array of friends who clearly need her help finding love. Kamila is so busy with her friends’ love lives, she’s hardly given any thought to her own. Fortunately, Kamila has Rohan, a longtime friend of the family. Only lately, Kamila’s “harmless flirting” with Rohan is making her insides do a little bhangra dance. But Kamila isn’t letting herself get distracted — until her secret nemesis returns to town with an eye for Rohan.
IF YOU LIKE Remember the Titans, TRY A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi
It’s 2002, a year after 9/11. It’s an extremely turbulent time politically, but especially so for someone like Shirin, a 16-year-old Muslim girl who’s tired of being stereotyped. Shirin is tired of the rude stares, the degrading comments — even the physical violence — she endures. So she’s built up protective walls. But then she meets Ocean James. He’s the first person in forever who really seems to want to get to know Shirin.They seem to come from two irreconcilable worlds — and Shirin has had her guard up for so long that she’s not sure she’ll ever be able to let it down.
IF YOU LIKE Bring It On, TRY We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry
In the town of Danvers, Massachusetts, home of the original 1692 witch trials, the 1989 Danvers Falcons will do anything to make it to the state finals — even if it means tapping into some devilishly dark powers. Helmed by good-girl captain Abby Putnam and her co-captain Jen Fiorenza, the Falcons flaunt society’s stale notions of femininity and storm their way through an unforgettable season.
IF YOU LIKE 10 Things I Hate About You, TRY Better Hate Than Never by Chloe Liese
Katerina Wilmot and Christopher Petruchio shared backyards as kids, but as adults they won’t even share the same hemisphere, until Kate makes a rare visit home. When a drunken Kate confesses she’s only been hostile because she thought he hated her, Christopher vows to make peace. As desire gives way to deeper feelings, Kate and Christopher must decide if it’s truly better to hate than to never risk their hearts.
IF YOU LIKE Dead Poets Society, TRY We Were Villains by M.L. Rio
On the day Oliver Marks is released, he’s greeted by the man who put him in prison. Detective Colborne is retiring, but he wants to know what really happened a decade ago. As young actors studying Shakespeare at an elite arts college, Oliver and his friends play the same roles onstage and off: hero, villain, tyrant, temptress, ingénue, extra. But when the secondary characters usurp the stars, the plays spill dangerously over into life, and one of them is found dead.
Ellen Whitfield is senior publicist at Books Forward, an author publicity and book marketing firm committed to promoting voices from a diverse variety of communities. From book reviews and author events, to social media and digital marketing, we help authors find success and connect with readers.
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