
Everything We Never Had
by Randy Ribay · Grades 7–12 · Young Adult Fiction
Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay is on US reading lists at grades 7–12. It appears on 3 lists: 2 book-award lists and 1 school or library reading list, across 2 states. Every citation below links to the primary source.
Before you buy: Ages 13–18 · Grades 7–12. The button opens the hardcover edition (ISBN 9780593461419). If the class uses a set edition or translation, match its ISBN first.
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Widely assigned — 3 curriculum lists · 2 states
Grade placement varies by school — the median assigned book spans 4 grade levels (83% span three or more, across 13,258 source-cited assignments).
This page shows where Everything We Never Had is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.
Reading level at a glance
- Grade range
- Grades 7–12
- Age range
- Ages 13–18
- First published
- 2024
- Genre
- Young Adult Fiction
- ISBN-13
- 9780593461419
Sources: grade range from the cited lists below, last checked 2026-08-11; pages and year from our catalog record (sources); reading time is an estimate at 250 words a minute.
Good fit for grade 7?
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New to these terms? Reading levels by grade
More formats & details
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About this book
Book facts and sources (2)
- On award reading lists
- Boston Globe–Horn Book Award (source: Wikipedia)
- Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award (source: coloradobluespruceaward.partnersinliteracy.org)
- Catalog record
- First published 2024 (source: how we source book data)
Similar grade-level books
To Kill a MockingbirdHarper Lee · 870L
The Great GatsbyF. Scott Fitzgerald · 1070L
Of Mice and MenJohn Steinbeck · 630L
Lord of the FliesWilliam Golding · 770L
See all books like Everything We Never Had→ — matched on theme + reading level.
Why widely assigned
This young adult fiction title is typically read at grades 7–12. Written in the 2020s; pairs with curriculum units on family and identity; cited on 3 lists: 2 book-award lists and 1 school or library reading list.
Themes
Where this book is recommended
Battle of the Books (state reading programs)
- recommended·9th grade · North Carolinasource: NCSLMA High School Battle of the Books — official 2025-2026 list
- recommended·10th grade · North Carolinasource: NCSLMA High School Battle of the Books — official 2025-2026 list
- recommended·11th grade · North Carolinasource: NCSLMA High School Battle of the Books — official 2025-2026 list
- recommended·12th grade · North Carolinasource: NCSLMA High School Battle of the Books — official 2025-2026 list
Boston Globe–Horn Book Award
- recommended·7th gradesource: Boston Globe–Horn Book Award winners, via Wikipedia — 2025 Winner
- recommended·8th gradesource: Boston Globe–Horn Book Award winners, via Wikipedia — 2025 Winner
- recommended·9th gradesource: Boston Globe–Horn Book Award winners, via Wikipedia — 2025 Winner
- recommended·10th gradesource: Boston Globe–Horn Book Award winners, via Wikipedia — 2025 Winner
- recommended·11th gradesource: Boston Globe–Horn Book Award winners, via Wikipedia — 2025 Winner
- recommended·12th gradesource: Boston Globe–Horn Book Award winners, via Wikipedia — 2025 Winner
Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award
- recommended·7th grade · Coloradosource: Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award 2025-2026 Nominee List (Grades 7-12)
- recommended·8th grade · Coloradosource: Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award 2025-2026 Nominee List (Grades 7-12)
- recommended·9th grade · Coloradosource: Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award 2025-2026 Nominee List (Grades 7-12)
- recommended·10th grade · Coloradosource: Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award 2025-2026 Nominee List (Grades 7-12)
- recommended·11th grade · Coloradosource: Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award 2025-2026 Nominee List (Grades 7-12)
- recommended·12th grade · Coloradosource: Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award 2025-2026 Nominee List (Grades 7-12)
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Common questions
- What grade level is Everything We Never Had?
- Everything We Never Had is listed for grades 7–12. It appears on 3 reading-program lists across 2 states. Exact placement varies by school and district.
- What curricula assign Everything We Never Had?
- Everything We Never Had appears on reading lists for Battle of the Books (state reading programs), Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, Colorado Blue Spruce Young Adult Book Award. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
- Is Everything We Never Had banned in schools?
- Everything We Never Had does not appear in PEN America's Index of School Book Bans 2022-2024. No documented multi-district removals on record, but individual districts may challenge titles locally.
- What themes does Everything We Never Had explore?
- Central themes in Everything We Never Had include family, identity, immigration.
Why this book is on this list
How we classifyHide
Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.
- Lexile measure
- Not classified — this book has no published Lexile measure.
- Grade band
- Grades 7–12 — drawn from the reading-program lists citing this book.
- Curriculum alignment
- Cited in 3 curricula on this site (see “Where recommended” above for primary-source links).
- State-level evidence
- On state book-award lists in 2 states (see citations above).
- Removal / banning records
- No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- Tagged for: book-club, read-aloud.