Diversity Before University Reading Challenge

Read 5 books from our list and write a 100 word review of each to earn 1 ticket into our raffle drawing for a $50 gift card*. You can enter multiple times, but you must read 5 different books each time. A winner will be drawn at the end of the school year and notified via email. Open to teens in grades 9th-12th.

For the full list of books available to read, see below. We tried to list as many books as possible, but if there is a book that is missing that you think should be added, email TeenUnderground@anchorageak.gov and let us know what book and why it should be added.

Reviews have a chance to be featured on the Teen Underground Instagram, the Anchorage Public Library website, or on a display in the Teen Underground.

*Winner can select a $50 gift card from one of these stores: Alaska Wild Berry Products, Bear Tooth Theaterpub/Moose's Tooth Pizza, Black Cup Café, Blaine's Art Supply, Dino's Donuts, Golden Dounts, Kaladi Brothers Café, Motley Moo Creamery, Obsession Records, Stewart's Photo Shop, Sweet Caribou, Sweet Creations Lollipop Boutique, The Hoarding Marmot, Title Wave, Video Game Depot, Wild Scoops.

Book List

A Crane Among Wolves - June Hur Love Is a Revolution - Reneé Watson
A Drop of Venom - Sajni Patel Moonstorm - Yoon Ha Lee
A Fragile Enchantment - Allison Saft Most Ardently - Gabe Cole Novoa
A Snake Falls to Earth - Darcie Little Badger No Time Like Now - Naz Kutub
A Suffragist’s Guide to the Antarctic - Yi Shun Lai No Way, They Were Gay?: Hidden Lives and Secret Loves - Lee Wind
A Tempest of Tea - Hafsah Faizal Now, Conjurers - Freddie Kölsch
All Boys Aren’t Blue - George M Johnson Off With Their Heads - Zoe Hana Mikuta
An Indigenous Peoples History of The United States: For Young People - Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz Once Upon a K-Prom - Kat Cho
Apple: Skin To the Core: A Memoir in Words and Pictures - Eric Gansworth Otherworldly - F. T. Lukens
Aristotle And Dante Discover the Secrets of The Universe - Benjamin Alire Sáenz Our Shadows Have Claws: 15 Latin American Monster Stories - Yamile Saied Méndez
ASAP - Axie Oh Out of Body - Nia Davenport
Asking For It - Louise O’Neill Piece by Piece: How I Built My Life No Instructions Required - David Aguilar
Beauty and the Besharam - Lillie Vale Puddin’ - Julie Murphy
Being Ace: An Anthology - Madeline Dyer Pulp - Robin Talley
Black Girl You Are Atlas - Reneé Watson Punching the Air - Ibi Aanu Zoboi
Blood Scion - Deborah Falaye Queerceañera - Alex Crespo
Burn Down, Rise Up - Vincent Tirado Redbone: The True Story of a Native American Rock Band - Christian Staebler
Canto Contigo: A Novel - Jonny Garza Villa She is a Haunting - Trang Thanh Tran
Cemetery Boys - Aiden Thomas Shut Up, This is Serious - Carolina Ixta
Children of Blood and Bone - Tomi Adeyemi Six Crimson Cranes - Elizabeth Lim
Come On In: 15 Stories About Immigration and Finding Home - Adi Alsaid Skin Of the Sea - Natasha Bowen
Darius The Great is Not Okay - Adib Khorram So Let Them Burn - Kamilah Cole
Darker by Four - June CL Tan Song of the Six Realms - Judy I. Lin
Dear Wendy - Ann Zhao Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet - Laekan Zea Kemp
Dear Justyce - Nic Stone Spilled Ink - Nadia Hashimi
Don't Ask Me Where I'm From - Jennifer De Leon Stamped: Racism, Anti-Racism, and You - Jason Reynolds
Dragonfruit - Makiia Lucier Stay With My Heart - Tashie Bhuiyan
Escaping Mr. Rochester - L.L. McKinney Surrender Your Sons - Adam Sass
Everything I Learned About Racism I Learned in School - Tiffany Jewell Survive The Dome - Kosoko Jackson
Firekeeper's Daughter - Angeline Boulley The Boyfriend Wish - Swati Teerdhala
Four Eids and a Funeral - Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé The Diablo’s Curse - Gabe Cole Novoa
Hell Followed with Us - Andrew Joseph White The Disability Experience: Working Towards Belonging - Hannora Leavill
Hidden Figures: Young Readers Edition - Margot Lee Shetterly The Ghosts of Rose Hill - R.M. Romero
Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute - Talia Hibbert The Hate U Give - Angie Thomas
Hollow Fires - Samira Ahmed The Keeper of Night - Kylie Lee Baker
How Moon Fuentez Fell in Love with the Universe - Raquel Vasquez Gilliland The Last Bloodcarver - Vanessa Le
How We Roll - Natasha Friend The Meaning of Birds - Jaye Robin Brown
I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter - Erika L. Sánchez The Next New Syrian Girl - Ream Shukairy
I Wish You All the Best - Mason Deaver The No Girlfriend Rule - Christen Randall
Icarus - K. Ancrum The Witch King - H. E. Edgmon
Infinity Alchemist - Kacen Callender The Wild Ones: A Broken Anthem for a Girl Nation - Nafiza Azad
Into the Sunken City - Dinesh Thiru This Book Is Gay - Juno Dawson
Iron Widow - Xiran Jay Zhao This Indian Kid: A Native American Memoir - Eddie Chuculate
It's A Whole Spiel: Love, Latkes, and Other Jewish Stories - Katherine Locke Unbroken: 13 Stories Starring Disabled Teens - Marieke Nijkamp
Juliet Takes a Breath - Gabby Rivera Unequal: A Story of America - Michael Eric Dyson
Kindling - Traci Chee We Are Not Free - Traci Chee
Last Night at The Telegraph Club - Melindo Lo Where You See Yourself - Claire Forrest
Like Other Girls - Britta Lundin Wings of Ebony - J. Elle
Living Beyond Borders: Growing Up Mexican in America - Margarita Longoria Woven in Moonlight - Isabel Ibañez
Long Way Down - Jason Reynolds You Should See Me in a Crown - Leah Johnson