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Author: Lisa Ko

Plot: "The Leavers" is about a young boy named Deming whose mother, Polly, an undocumented Chinese immigrant, disappears from his life with no warning. He is eventually adopted by two college professors and is moved to upstate New York, who rename him Daniel Wilkinson. Deming does not have a strong sense of identity and has to make sense of why his mother left and the life that was taken away from him. Not being able to fit into his new life, he yearns to discover the mystery of his mother's disappearance.

Why it is transformative: This book is transformative because it addresses the issues that undocumented immigrants have living in another country. It also addresses the challenges of adopted children who struggle to make sense of their past. Deming's mother was ultimately left with the choice of struggling to live in China with Deming or borrowing money from a loan shark to be smuggled to America. She made sacrifices so that Deming could live a happy life.

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Author: 50 Cent

Plot: "Playground" is about 13-year old boy named Butterball who faces bullying, racism and poverty. He also struggles with the fact that his parents are divorced, and that he had to move to Long Island with his mom instead of living with his dad in the city. After beating up his friend with a battery in a sock on a playground, he is forced to talk to a therapist named Liz who tries to understand his actions. 50 Cent uses his own life experiences to tell the story.

Why it is transformative: This book portrays the life of a young man who manages to work through the struggles and adversity in his life. It is a great example of how people often become bullies because they are a victim of bullying themselves, and that a little help from someone can go a long way.

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The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian

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The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian

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Author: Sherman Alexie

Plot: This book explores the life of Arnold Spirit Jr., a.k.a Junior, who lives on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Junior was born was hydrocephalus, which results in him having a lisp, a stutter and sometimes suffers from seizures. Because of this, he always get picked on at the reservation. His family is extremely poor; they sometimes cannot afford food for the house or gas for the car. His father is an alcoholic, and his family suffers from many alcohol-related tragedies throughout the book. Regardless, he is extremely smart and is able to get into a wealthy, all-white high school. He is torn between fitting in there and sticking to his heritage.

Why it is transformative: Junior is at a disadvantage for many reasons. He is Native American, a strongly marginalized group in the U.S, he has a disability which hinders him greatly and his family struggles financially. Through his struggles, he manages to become successful in a school that most like him would not belong at, and realizes the things that are most important to him.

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Author: Ellen Hopkins

Plot: "Crank" is about a girl named Kristina who feels that she doesn't fit in with her family. She visits her birth father in Albuquerque who is also very distant with her. It is during that time she meets a guy named Adam who introduces her to methamphetamine. After that, her life begins to spiral out of control as she tries to feed her addiction and deal with the consequences of her actions. She creates a new persona for herself, named Bree, who she considers the "wild side" of herself.

Why it is transformative: This series captures the true essence of drug addiction and how destructive it can be to people. It presents the reality of the consequences, and proves that even the most unlikely of people can become addicted to drugs.

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Author: Elie Wiesel

Plot: "Night" is the true account of Elie Wiesel's experience as a prisoner of Auschwitz and Gleiwitz during World War II. After Gestapo take over his small town of Sighet, Transylvania, the Jews that live there are forced onto cattle cars and taken to Birkenau. Elie and his father are separated from the rest of their family are treated horribly at the camp. As the Russians are about to liberate Buna, the prisoners of Auschwitz are forced on a death march to another camp. Elie's father dies during the march, but Elie ultimately survives when Americans liberate the camp on April 11, 1945.

Why it is transformative: This story is just one experience of a person from one of the most marginalized religious groups in the world. It is important that Elie told his story because having an understanding of the past prevents mistakes from happening in the future.

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Author: Dr. Seuss

Plot: "The Sneetches" tells the story of bird-like animals, some that have green stars on their bellies and some that do not. The Sneetches with stars discriminate against the ones that don't. An entrepreneur with a "Star-On Machine" comes around and offers his services for three dollars. As the Sneetches without stars begin receiving them, the original starred Sneetches become upset. The entrepreneur begins removing their stars for even more money. Eventually the Sneetches become broke and cannot tell the difference between themselves. This makes them realize that no one is superior to another and that they should get along.

Why it is transformative: This story is a goofy way of presenting the issues of prejudice and discrimination in society. Although the Sneetches with stars thought they were superior, they were not in reality. The moral of the story is that we should appreciate differences in one another instead of putting up barriers.

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Author: Nic Stone

Plot: Justyce is a straight-A student at a mostly white school who plans go to to Yale when he graduates. When he gets arrested for something out of his control, he realizes the law is not on his side. When he begins to be judged for what happened, he starts to write letters to Martin Luther King Jr. as a way of making sense of the police injustice, racism and prejudice around him. As he and his friend Manny are driving around and listening to music loudly, a white off-duty cop confronts them which ends in gunfire. Justyce is now seen as a criminal once again.

Why it is transformative: Even though Justyce does well in school and plans to attend a prestigious college, he is still seen as a thug in the eyes of police. This is obviously because he is black, and he is put in several situations in which he is seen as a suspect when he is really the victim. It is also transformative because it makes connections to Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement.

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Author: Sharon M. Draper

Plot: After a big basketball win, Andrew Jackson and Robbie Washington decide to drink and party to celebrate. They make the mistake of drinking and driving which causes them to get into an accident. Robbie unfortunately passes away, and Andrew has to bare the guilt of his loss. Because of this, he decides to commit suicide which devastates the family and friends that he associates with.

Why it is transformative: This book is a great an example of the reasons that push people towards taking their own life. There is a strong stigma about suicide that makes people think that people do it because they are selfish or wanted attention. The situation in this book shows the real reasoning behind the problem.

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Author: Walter Dean Myers

Plot: This story follows a 16-year old African-American teenager named Steve Harmon who is on trial for murder. Although there are many things that point to him being guilty, he is eventually found innocent by the end of the trial. The other person being convicted with him is sent to prison, on the other hand. The story is filled with third-person accounts, flashbacks and different perspectives.

Why it is transformative: This is a heart-wrenching story about a black teen being tried as an adult for murder. Chances are, if he was white then he would not be in the same situation. It shows how much more vulnerable African Americans are to the law.

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Author: Jay Asher

Plot: A boy named Clay Jensen receives mysterious audiotapes from an unknown sender. As he listens to them, he realizes that they are from a girl named Hannah Baker, who recently committed suicide. He soon finds out that there is a tape for each person that is the reason for her death. He and Hannah were close, so he's not sure why he ended up on the tapes. He works to discover why, as well as figure out how each person is involved in the situation.

Why it is transformative: This is a story in which people are actually held accountable for someone's suicide. Most of the time, someone can get away with bullying and harassment when this sort of thing happens. It is a new perspective on the issue that holds a lot of sustenance.