Secondary English teachers often struggle to infuse their classrooms with literature from the canon along with the proliferation of young adult texts that are often more relevant to their students. Not since Joan Kaywell's edited volume Adolescent Literature as a Complement to the Classics (1993), and her updates a decade later, has there been a definitive work combining these texts as complements to each other. This two-volume work offers unique options for teachers, with chapters organized chronologically by the publication date of the canonical text, providing a wide array of pairings with unique approaches to pedagogy within the strictures of the National Council of Teachers of English. Each chapter is organized with an introductory section; a summary of texts (without an emphasis on the canon); and instructional activities (with options) for before, during, and after the unit. Chapters also include extension activities and substantive lists of relevant references. This book will be valuable to veteran teachers who have at least some graduate work relating to further canon study and a broad understanding of relevant young adult texts. Highly recommended.

Choice Reviews

This book is an essential resource for English teachers who want to use BOTH young adult literature and canonical texts in their classrooms without sacrificing either. The world has changed dramatically since my last edition of Adolescent Literature as a Complement to the Classics was published in 1993 and Greathouse and Malo-Juvera provide a timely update that reflects current issues and features recently published young adult titles. Young Adult and Canonical Literature: Pairing and Teaching provides practical methods for teaching, in chapters written by the new vanguard of educators in the field of young adult literature. This is a must have book.

Joan F. Kaywell, professor of English education, University of South Florida

Greathouse and Malo-Juvera provide ample evidence of the value of pairing YA literature with classic texts. From Pride and Prejudice to The Bluest Eye the authors of every chapter demonstrate how quality YA makes complex ideas and theories encased in the classics relevant to the modern audiences.

Steven T. Bickmore, Associate Professor of English Education, University of Nevada Las Vegas; curator, Dr. Bickmore's YA Wednesday Blog