Jessica Levine

It’s the perennial question of teachers, librarians, and parents alike: How do you get kids to read more over their summer break? Research has shown that kids’ favorite books are the books that they choose themselves. Understanding this, publishers focus on fun books for summer reading.

With the 2024 Nation’s Report Card showing further declines in reading, more support for struggling readers and their educators has never been more important. Let’s take a closer look at these new series for struggling readers.

As teachers and school librarians work to add more diverse voices to their libraries’ collections, we continue learning more about the impact of these efforts on literacy. According to First Book Research & Insights, “a majority of students chose to read diverse books that serve as mirrors, where they can see themselves.”

More than 47 percent of the titles targeted [for book bans] represent LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC voices and experiences. Publishers are responding to book challenges by endorsing Right to Read acts, contributing book résumés to the Unite Against Book Bans initiative and continuing to prioritize titles representing LGBTQIA+ individuals and families.

Publishers have long been dedicated to creating books that appeal to struggling and reluctant readers. Even before the pandemic, two-thirds of fourth graders were reading below grade level, according to the National Assessment of Education Progress. Now, the need for such books is even more crucial.

Even as teachers and librarians face continued attempts to restrict the circulation of books normalizing diversity, publishers are dedicated to putting more of them than ever before on school and library shelves.

Historically, most Spanish-language originals came out of Spain. But in the U.S. Latinx population, people of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Salvadoran, Cuban, Dominican, Guatemalan, Colombian, and Honduran origin all outnumber Spaniards. It’s important that Latinx children have access to books from authors whose origins are as diverse as their own.

Publishers are working to rectify the under- and misrepresentation of Indigenous voices and history, with content that authentically represents both the historic and contemporary experiences of Indigenous people.

Should teachers and librarians back away from SEL to avoid the political heat? Parents broadly support schools teaching SEL-related skills, or “life skills,” to use the more politically neutral term. And publishers continue to see the ever-increasing value of SEL themes and to prioritize them in their publishing programs.