In this year’s round of “Refreshing the Canon,” we would love to hear which titles you would KEEP on your summer reading lists—classics that you as librarians and educators believe should still be taught in schools. 

Last May, SLJ editors, in conjunction with members of NCTE’s Standing Committee Against Censorship and the Orbis Pictus Award committees, created 18 read-alike lists for summer reading staples, such as Lord of the Flies and Little Women. Inspired by our Reinventing Summer Reading survey that asked which titles educators would remove from the often stale lists, we joined forces to select 141 titles that can reinvigorate the “canon,” or books considered classics by U.S. educators.

For 2023, we’d like to turn that question on its head. Which books would you recommend remain on these time-honored lists? Log your responses on this form. 

In May, we will share those results, in addition to multi-modal suggestions—including nonfiction, graphic novels, documentaries, and more—for your classrooms and libraries. 

We look forward to reading your responses!