Your Students Won’t Be Able to Stop Talking About Amazon’s Top Books of 2017

BY Rob Samuelson December 29, 2017

Every classroom deserves to have a more vibrant discussion, and Amazon’s list of best-sellers can be a good place to start.

The Harry Potter Series

As usual, the “Harry Potter” series continues to rack up big sales. Depending on which grades you teach, you can always pick an age-appropriate book from the series.

A Gentleman in Moscow

There has been a lot of talk about revolution in the last couple years, from the tech world to presidential campaigns. Amor Towles’ novel, “A Gentleman in Moscow,” can help your students learn a thing or two about what revolutions have meant historically.

Beneath a Scarlet Sky

With neo-Nazis making the news more than ever, it’s perhaps no surprise that a book about living under fascism during the 1940s has gotten so much attention. Mark Sullivan’s “Beneath a Scarlet Sky,” is bound to get students talking.

A Game of Thrones

Dragons, beheadings and more are things that get a reaction out of young people, but George R.R. Martin’s enormously popular “A Game of Thrones” continues to be a best-seller because of its political allegory. Hook your (older) students with those surface-level things, but keep them engaged with how the political sausage gets made and how power plays actually happen.

The Handmaid’s Tale

“The Handmaid’s Tale,” Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel about a religiously fanatical government oppressing women, cleaned up in multiple mediums this year, including winning a bunch of Emmys for the television adaptation. What were your favorite books in 2017? https://www.facebook.com/BetterConversationBetterEducation/videos/740500002815364/

Photo by RODICIOC, Twenty20-licensed.

Rob Samuelson is a Staff Writer at Education Post and Digital Media Manager for the brightbeam network.

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