Welcome to UHS!
We are your friendly librarians, Nicole and Hayley, and we are happy to welcome you to the UHS library!
Over the summer, we'd like you to read I Was Their American Dream to get you ready to engage in your Ethnic Studies class. We've also suggested some other books for you to read around the theme of identities. And, of course, feel free to read books from the other grades' lists.
You can find these books in Sora, our ebook platform. You can access it here - just use your UHS email address as your username and there's no password. Here is some more information about using Sora. You can also get all these books at the San Francisco Public LIbrary.
[Note: You won't be able to access Sora until you have your UHS email address]
Reading for Ethnic Studies
I Was Their American Dream by Publication Date: 2019This summer we are asking incoming 9th graders to read I Was Their American Dream by Malaka Gharib. This graphic memoir follows Gharib from her childhood into high school (and then later into college and work) as she navigates her multicultural identities. This book will serve as the foundational text for the 9th grade Responsive Education course students will take in either the fall or spring semester next year.
Available in paperback via local and online retailers, there are also copies in all local public libraries. We have several copies on our Sora eBook platform too, which you can access here - just use your UHS email address as your username and there's no password. Here is some more information about using Sora.
[Note: You won't be able to access Sora until you have your UHS email address]
Fiction
Clap When You Land by Publication Date: 2020A gorgeous novel in verse about two teenage sisters separated by a secret, an ocean, and their father. (in the library, ebook, and audiobook)
Everything Sad Is Untrue by Publication Date: 2020This moving fictionalized account of the author's childhood in Iran, refugee camps, and then the Bible Belt in the USA is written as a chapterless "patchwork story" stitched together to create a quilt of memory. (in the library, ebook, and audiobook)
The House in the Cerulean Sea by Publication Date: 2020An enchanting fantasy about a gray bureaucrat who is sent to investigate an orphanage full of magical children and finds his worldview completely changed. (in the library and ebook)
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Publication Date: 2021It's 1954 San Francisco and when 17 year-old Lily Hu discovers the Telegraph nightclub by accident, it opens up her world. (ebook and audiobook)
Out of Left Field by Publication Date: 2024UHS alum Jonah Newman's semi-autobiographical graphic novel about his time at high school hits a home run! (in the library and ebook)
True Biz by Publication Date: 2022A vibrant story set in a boarding school for Deaf high school students, where they find love and friendship and battle a series of injustices. (in the library and ebook)
Nonfiction
American Like Me by Publication Date: 2019Heartfelt essays on what it feels like to live in the US with more than one cultural, racial, ethnic, or national identity written by a wide range of musicians, actors, writers, and athletes. (in the library and ebook)
Born a Crime by Publication Date: 2016South African comedian Trevor Noah's memoir describes his experiences growing up under apartheid with insight and humor. (in the library and ebook)
Just Mercy (Adapted for Young Adults) by Publication Date: 2018A deeply moving collage of true stories about the injustices of the US criminal justice system. Lawyer Stevenson inspires with his work on behalf of the most vulnerable in our society. (in the library)
Solito by Publication Date: 2022Vivid and harrowing, this memoir documents the harrowing journey of 9-year-old Zamora from El Salvador to the US. (in the library and ebook)
It Won't Always Be Like This by Publication Date: 2022In this engaging companion to I Was Their American Dream, Malaka is spending summers in Egypt with her father and his new family and meets the culture clashes that ensues. (in the library and ebook)
