Rising Class: How Three First-Generation College Students Conquered Their First Year

Gr 9 Up–This is a wonderfully pieced together narrative of three students’ experiences as first-generation college students in the midst of a pandemic. Though the focus is not on the pandemic itself, the lives of the students are obviously impacted from the unsettled state of the world during 2020 and beyond. The flow and organization of this informative book allow readers to get immersed in the lives of each of the three students, their friends, and families. Readers will often find their hearts aching and want to help these students as they share intimate and vulnerable parts of their experience. This will not only inform prospective students of a small variety of options and experiences, but provides a very deep dive into those three experiences. For educators, this will also serve to inform them of tribulations that many students, not just first-generation students, encounter throughout their high school senior year, as well as the first year of higher education.