Each study guide includes essays, an in-depth chapter-by-chapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quiz. Study guides are available in PDF format.
Bad Dreams (2017) by Tessa Hadley is a collection of six separate but thematically connected short stories. Broadly, they tell the stories of people who have to deal with difficult situations. One story follows two sisters who begin to fight...
Catching Teller Crow (2019) was written by the sister-brother team Ambelin and Ezekiel Kwaymullina. A thriller, Kwaymullina's novel is told from the perspective of two Aboriginal protagonists. One of those protagonists is the father of Beth Teller...
Jean Lee Latham's Carry On, Mr. Bowditch (first published in 1955) is a children's biography about Nathaniel Bowditch, an American sailor, and mathematician responsible for one of the most essential books for seamen of the 18th and 19th centuries:...
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a Nigerian author born in 1977, whose literary works include short stories, novels, speeches, and non-fiction. According to The New Literary Supplement (NLS), Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is the most well-known and...
Anna Seghers' The Seventh Cross was published in 1942, during the height of World War II. The novel is set in the Westhofen camp, which is fictitious but based in part on real-life concentration camps. It follows a young man named George Heisler,...
Robert Seethaler's The Tobacconist (2017) is a novel about war and friendship. The novel is set during the Nazi occupation of Vienna, Austria, during WWII. It follows a seventeen-year-old young man named Franz Huchel, who travels to Vienna to...
The Turning is a short story collection written by Tim Winton. The book was published in 2004. It has received critical acclaim for its examination of various themes related to Australian life and culture.
It consists of seventeen interconnected...
Steven Amsterdam's Things We Didn't See Coming (2010) is a coming-of-age novel comprised of several different stories set over three decades. It follows the journey of a young boy into adulthood over the course of three decades. The novel begins...
Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu's The Theory of Flight (2018) tells the story of Genie, a young woman who spent much of her childhood isolated from the rest of her country and the world in a field of dandelions. But The Theory of Flight doesn't tell just...
Matt de la Peña's Mexican Whiteboy (2008) is undoubtedly an innovative and unique novel. Through its use of Spanglish (a language variety mixing English and Spanish) and other themes, the novel explores the trial and tribulations often associated...
Carmen Maria Machado's In the Dream House (2019) is a unique and innovative memoir that chronicles Machado's abusive relationship with her abusive partner while studying for her Master of Fine Arts at a university in Iowa. In the memoir, which is...
Roller Girl (2015) was penned by Victoria Jamieson and tells the story of a young girl named Astrid, whose mother often takes her to "Evenings of Cultural Enrichment." Bored with these events, Astrid tries to find another way to occupy her time....
Alabama Moon (published in 2006) by Watt Key follows the ten-year-old Moon Blake as he navigates a unfamiliar and challenging world. Raised in the Alabama wilderness by his father, Moon must learn to adapt to society after his father's untimely...
Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life is a children's novel penned by James Patterson and Chris Tebbetts and published in 2011. The story is primarily set in a middle school and is the first installment in the Middle School series. The novel...
Bunnicula: A Rabbit-Tale of Mystery is a children's novel by Deborah and James Howe, published in 1979. The story is set in the Monroe household and is narrated from the perspective of the family dog, Harold. The Monroes, who also have a cat named...
Poop Fountain!: The Qwikpick Papers by Tom Angleberger, first published in 2007, is the inaugural book in the Qwikpick Papers series. This middle-grade novel introduces readers to the trio of Lyle, Marilla, and Dave, best friends who find...
The Seventh Most Important Thing (published in 2016) by Shelley Pearsall revolves around Arthur Owens, a thirteen-year-old boy who is caught throwing a brick at the Junk Man, an older man who is always seen pushing a shopping cart filled with...
The Black Cauldron (published in 1965), the second installment in "The Chronicles of Prydain" series by Lloyd Alexander, is an absorbing blend of fantasy, adventure, and classic coming-of-age narrative. The story revolves around the young...
Doug TenNapel is a 56-year-old American writer, cartoonist, and animator whose works have been converted to video games and animated television programs. For instance, TenNapel is best known for his video game character, Earthworm Jim, who became...
Lunch Money, penned by Andrew Clements, is a captivating middle-grade novel that offers young readers a deep dive into entrepreneurship. The book's narrative centers around a sixth-grade student named Greg Kenton and his knack for making money....
Wonderstruck (published in 2011) is an innovative work of children's literature written and illustrated by Brian Selznick. The novel uniquely utilizes both text and detailed illustrations to weave together two parallel narratives set fifty years...
The Incredible Journey is a novel published by Sheila Burnford in 1961. Burnford was born in Scotland and lived there until 1951 when she immigrated to Ontario with her husband. Her first decade in her adopted homeland provided the background and...
Cynthia Rylant's Missing May (1992) tells the story of a young girl named Summer, whose aunt - and de facto caregiver - just died in her vast garden. This rocks Summer, who had just lost her parents several years prior, to her core. After her Aunt...
The Egypt Game (published in 1967) by Zilpha Keatley Snyder is a captivating children's novel that explores the power of imagination, friendship, and the process of coming of age through an elaborate game centered around ancient Egyptian culture....
