# Books about death assigned in US schools

**17** books in the US-school assigned-reading canon explore _death_. Sourced from state ELA standards, AP/IB syllabi, and Common Core exemplar lists.

**Grade span:** 3–12
**Canonical URL:** https://readinglist.school/theme/death
**License:** [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) — please credit ReadingList.school when citing.

## Authors who explore death

- [Eve Bunting](https://readinglist.school/author/eve-bunting) (2 books)
- [Ralph J. Fletcher](https://readinglist.school/author/ralph-j-fletcher) (2 books)
- [Lois Lowry](https://readinglist.school/author/lois-lowry)
- [Rita Williams-Garcia](https://readinglist.school/author/rita-williams-garcia)
- [Sharon M. Draper](https://readinglist.school/author/sharon-m-draper)

## death canon

- [A Sudden Silence](https://readinglist.school/book/a-sudden-silence) by Eve Bunting _(Grades 9–12)_
- [A Summer to Die](https://readinglist.school/book/a-summer-to-die) by Lois Lowry _(Grades 9–12)_
- [As I Lay Dying](https://readinglist.school/book/as-i-lay-dying) by William Faulkner _(Grades 11–12)_
- [Blackwater](https://readinglist.school/book/blackwater) by Eve Bunting _(Grades 6–8)_
- [Clayton Byrd Goes Underground](https://readinglist.school/book/clayton-byrd-goes-underground) by Rita Williams-Garcia _(Grades 3–5)_
- [Drive-By](https://readinglist.school/book/drive-by) by Lynne Ewing _(Grades 3–8)_
- [Fig Pudding](https://readinglist.school/book/fig-pudding) by Ralph J. Fletcher _(Grades 3–5)_
- [Flying Solo](https://readinglist.school/book/flying-solo) by Ralph J. Fletcher _(Grades 4–6)_
- [Jude the Obscure](https://readinglist.school/book/jude-the-obscure) by Thomas Hardy _(Grades 11–12)_
- [Perfect](https://readinglist.school/book/perfect) by Natasha Friend _(Grades 6–9)_
- [Pursuit](https://readinglist.school/book/pursuit) by Michael French _(Grades 9–12)_
- [Red Kayak](https://readinglist.school/book/red-kayak) by Priscilla Cummings _(Grades 6–8)_
- [Say Goodnight, Gracie](https://readinglist.school/book/say-goodnight-gracie) by Julie Reece Deaver _(Grades 9–12)_
- [Tears of A Tiger](https://readinglist.school/book/tears-of-a-tiger) by Sharon M. Draper _(Grades 9–12)_
- [The Silver Kiss](https://readinglist.school/book/the-silver-kiss) by Annette Curtis Klause _(Grades 9–12)_
- [The Truth Trap](https://readinglist.school/book/the-truth-trap) by Frances A. Miller _(Grades 9–12)_
- [You Shouldn't Have to Say Goodbye](https://readinglist.school/book/you-shouldnt-have-to-say-goodbye) by Patricia Hermes _(Grades 4–6)_

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_Generated from primary-source citations indexed on ReadingList.school. JSON API: https://readinglist.school/api/theme/death · HTML view: https://readinglist.school/theme/death._