6 Books for Adults to Celebrate Back to School

It’s back to school!

For my youth group, not me, praise the Lord!

And all those teachers. Bless their souls.

But to show my support and fully embrace the season, here are 6 of my favorite books whose main characters are teachers, for all us adults our there. (And teens. There's quite a few young adult books listed here, but I read them all well after high school and still loved them!)

1. Southern Charmed by Melanie Jacobson

Travel down south to Baton Rouge, where Lila Mae Guidry starts her next year teaching high school. But Max Archer has made a surprise appearance. The most surprising thing? That he came back to the South when all he did was mock it the three years he lived there.

Lila Mae is already chest-deep in helping one of her favorite students win a prestigious scholarship, one that would give her a chance to break out of the cycle of poverty. She doesn’t need an old nemesis distracting her at the same time. And she won’t even consider leaving Baton Rouge, so really, why start up with Max at all?

Southern Charmed brings all the Southern hospitality, the fire of an enemies-to-lovers trope, and incredibly moving relationships between the characters, especially a teacher and her students.

2. There You’ll Find Me by Jenny B. Jones

School doesn’t have to stay in one brick-and-mortar building, let’s go on a study abroad to Ireland!

Die-hard fans might recognize this plot as the Amazon Prime movie Finding You. It’s similar (and in some cases better– there, I said it), but like most movies, it had to leave out some crucial elements. 

Finley is drowning in grief over her brother, so much so that she can’t pass her music conservatory interview. It’s like she’s got no life left in her. She feels like she’s lost any connection she had with her brother, and right along with that, her connection with God. Her brother always talked about how close God felt when he was doing a study abroad program in Ireland, so Finley decides to retrace his steps with his journal, his teachers, and his host family.

And if Ireland couldn’t be dreamy enough, here enters a Hollywood heartthrob.

Oh! All the butterflies and sighs a girl could want with this one! Don't be late for class.

3. P.S. I Like You by Kasie West

Any teen (and adult!) will love Kasie West’s books, and P.S. I Like You is my second favorite of this author. Real close to the first, but not quite.

Maybe I love it because main character Lily keeps finding mysterious notes written on her desk in Chemistry class. 

I hated my chemistry class, desk notes would have been much more entertaining.

But the other writer is none other than annoying Cade Jennings. He’s petty, he’s rich, he’s… you know. Probably cute.

The romantic tension in this YA novel is better than 90% of the adult novels I’ve read. Mostly realistic, no annoyingly angsty teenagers, just normal people. My youth group girls love it! 

They’re also... probably secretly hoping something like it will happen to them. 

Shoot. Gotta get ready to play defense.

4. I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You by Ally Carter

What does one actually learn in a private, all-girls academy? How to use five forks at each meal? How to balance a book on your head while walking? French?

Cammie Morgan can answer yes to all those questions– and so much more.

Yes, she learned all about place settings, because you never know when you’ll need to infiltrate a state dinner. And she does have impeccable posture so she can blend in with all those dignitaries. And she knows French. And German. And 14 other languages.

Gallagher Academy looks like a prep academy to everyone in town, but all the professors know they are actually training their girls to be elite spies. Cammie thought that made her pretty tough… but then she met a really cute boy in town.

And to her horror, she realized no one ever taught her how to flirt.

If you want to relive your school-crush days, and the very awkward teenage-dating era (you might still be in it, no judgment here) you’ll give this series an A+.

Seriously. Make sure you have a couple weeks handy, you'll want to finish the series. 

5. Back to Class by Aspen Hadley

Ahhh, workplace romances. They never get old and they never really end well.

Especially when it’s between two teachers.

Aryn Murphy is a wonderful teacher. Her technology doesn’t agree, and that’s the only reason the tech teacher, Wesley, is always in her classroom. You can’t teach when your projector is smoking, ya know? And could the rest of the world get a life? She doesn’t need more rumors flying around about who she’s possibly dating, and she definitely doesn’t need more creepy, macho men making passes at her!

You know… maybe Wesley could be useful. They were pretty good friends in high school, maybe he’d be her fake boyfriend in public to fend off all the unwanteds?

Back to Class is painfully realistic, especially in how we women can sometimes be so kindly cutting to the nice guy. You’ll wince at how Aryn and Wesley treat each other in the beginning, but when they get together?

The projector won’t be the only thing smoking.

6. Front of the Class by Brad Cohen

Years before I realized Hallmark made movies based on real stories, I watched Front of the Class at my grandma’s house. Sitting on her quilt-layered bed, watching the Hallmark channel on her super-ritzy cable subscription, I learned about a man who, despite being unable to control some sounds and movements, wanted to be a teacher.

Most educators told him his Tourette’s syndrome would be too distracting for the kids or even doubted he was competent enough to teach. And sometimes he believed that. But he kept going, strong like a teacher.

Whether you read the book or only watch the movie, prepare to have your heart break and then be reassembled in Brad Cohen’s story.

Class is starting, looks like it's time to send your kidos to school so you can have a few hours of library time. Happy Reading (and good luck with this years book reports!)

*All links are simply links, I don't get any money if you click them. I just want to make finding great stories as easy as possible for you!*

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