Compiled by Rich Wilson
As the summer season begins, many school staff find they have more time to devote to reading. But what to read? That’s where the NJEA Professional Development and Instructional Issues (PDII) Division staff come in. We have compiled our annual summer reading list. We hope you find some treasures here that will help sustain you through the summer and beyond.
Amanda Adams, coordinator of the NJEA ACCESS program, suggests “What It Takes to Heal” by Prentis Hemphill. She says it feels like a gentle but honest invitation to come back home to yourself: to your body, your story and your relationships. It’s the kind of book that doesn’t just teach you something, it shifts how you hold yourself and others.
Convention coordinator Vicki Serreino recommends “The Giver of Stars” by Jojo Moyes. Set in 1930s Kentucky, it follows a group of women delivering books to remote Appalachian communities through the Pack Horse Library Project. Serreino especially enjoyed the book for how it honors often overlooked women and presents education not just as information, but as hope, dignity and possibility.
“Good Different” by Meg Eden Kuyatt is the choice of Dr. Kim Pinckney, who coordinates the NJEA Consortium project. In this book, the protagonist is Selah, an autistic student who uses “dragon” metaphors to describe her sensory processing challenges. The book, written as a novel in verse, is a powerful look at “masking,” hiding one’s true self to fit social norms and the breaking point that occurs when those norms become too restrictive.
Carolyn Thompson, administrative assistant for the NJEA Teacher Leader Academy, has recently decided to reclaim her childhood through reading books she may have read or should have read, but sometimes her memory is foggy. On deck for her this summer is “The Wizard of Oz,” first published in 1900.
Elisabeth Yucis, PDII’s policy expert, wants you to remember the adage “you never read the same book twice.” Reread an old favorite or two and see what new insights come up for you. Rereads she recommends “Braiding Sweetgrass” by Robin Wall Kimmerer, “Untamed” by Glennon Doyle, “Devotions” by Mary Oliver and “My Life in France” by Julia Child.
Krista Orellana, administrative assistant for the NJEA Convention, suggests “Broken Country” by Clare Leslie Hall. In this novel, a quiet life unravels when the past refuses to stay buried, forcing a woman back into secrets she thought were long gone.
I recommend the legal thriller “By Way of Sorrow” by Robyn Gigle, in which transgender defense attorney Erin McCabe is confronted with a challenging case when the son of a prominent New Jersey politician is allegedly murdered by a Black transgender prostitute. This page turner will leave you wanting more. Fortunately, this is the first of a series of Erin McCabe legal mystery thrillers.
Brenda Julian, assistant to the consortium project, recommends a number of books from “The Lucy Barton” series by Elizabeth Strout. This collection of novels explores themes of poverty, memory, strained family dynamics and emotional resilience.
Dr. Chrissi Miles, division director, suggests “The Healed Empath” by Kristen Schwartz. This book draws on neuroscience, psychology and mind-body practices to help highly sensitive nervous systems heal trauma, rebuild boundaries and move toward a greater sense of self-agency.
Whether you feel the need to escape or are looking for tools to help you heal, there are choices for you. We hope the list will help you find a relaxing and restorative summer, resting up for the new school year.
Rich Wilson is an associate director in the Professional Development and Instructional Issues Division. He is the coordinator of the NJEA Teacher Leader Academy. He can be reached at rwilson@njea.org. For more information about the academy, visit njea.org/tla.