Selecting a book for the first community-wide read in Maplewood and South Orange was a long and arduous task. The selection committee worked extra hard to make sure that the first book selected was the right book. (They soon learned that there was no one right book!) Here are the criteria identified by the selection committee against which each of the books suggested was judged:

Alignment with the Coalition mission

Addressing race and community

Appropriateness (well-written) for adults and young adult (high school) readers

Activating provocative discussion

Available

Affordable

Accessible