Hello everyone! Today, we are discussing why teens need diverse fiction, with one of my favorite Young Adult authors, Brendan Kiely. Brendan Kiely is The New York Times bestselling author of All American Boys (with Jason Reynolds), Tradition, The Last True Love Story, and The Gospel of Winter, and together, we discuss the power fiction can have in our student's lives, and why we should make our libraries as diverse as the kids in our classrooms. Before Brendan found success with his fiction, he taught in schools in New York. This background of his allowed our talk to branch beyond author to teacher, and into a deeper world of really asking the tough questions about the role literature has in our schools, why certain books are necessary (even if they're controversial), and how we should be using modern fiction to inspire kids to check out the classics, not the other way around. If you've ever read a Brendan Kiely novel, or if you care about diversifying your school/classroom library to incorporate fiction that speaks to your students, you're in for a treat with this talk. If you've never read a Brendan Kiely novel, you're still in for a treat, but I need you to grab one of his books and see his great work for yourself. Click on the images below to check out his work! Enjoy! Don't forget to subscribe and review the show on iTunes!