Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen, The

Reach for this book when your teenager is struggling with the pressure to fit into their community or questioning the boundaries between their family traditions and the outside world. This wry and contemporary novel follows Hoodie Rosen, a boy in a newly relocated Orthodox Jewish community, as he navigates a forbidden friendship with the local mayor's daughter. While the voice is witty and irreverent, the story tackles the heavy reality of rising antisemitism and the pain of being ostracized by one's own people. It is a powerful choice for older teens, ages 14 and up, who are ready to discuss how identity is forged in the face of both internal communal pressure and external prejudice.