By Cooper Hofmann

Over the summer, Granada Hills Charter (GHC) teachers and administrators worked to create the Granada Reads program where all staff and students will read the same book and have community discussions. 

Administration worked to purchase the license of Becky Chambers’ “The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet” for all students and staff using grant money received from the California Department of Education at the start of last school year. The program has been in the works for the past few months with planning beginning last spring. 

Though the team is still working on the logistics of how they will get the book to over 5,000 people, students and staff should receive their digital downloads soon.

Chambers’ book, published in 2014, is set in a sci-fi society called the “Galactic Commons,” and it follows protagonist Rosemary Harper as she flees her old life. She joins the crew of a ship called “the Wayfarer,” and follows along with them as they go on galactic adventures. Uniquely, the novel focuses less on typical sci-fi action, and more on the cooperation and comradery between the crew members, who are all of different species. Chambers’ novel delves into the individual characteristics of each crew member, emphasizing how differences can be a unique strength for a team.

Community is the driving theme in the novel and a driving force behind the Granada Reads project overall. The book is being given to not only students but also staff, pushing the theme of community even further.

“The book is about a diverse group of people, who already respect each other and their differences,” English department chair Mathew Arnold said. “They work as a team and appreciate what makes each other unique. When you have a message like that, we think it will really resonate with such a diverse school community and such a diverse city like Los Angeles.”

Arnold spearheaded the program process, filing a proposal within the grant and working to launch Granada Reads. English teacher Kate Bryan was the one who initially read and suggested the book, coming in with the hope that if students and staff all read together, and share those common experiences, more comradery can be built between students as well as staff.

There are plans for the Associated Student Body (ASB) to work on events based on generating excitement and interest in the book. But as of now, nothing has been set in stone.

Additionally, Arnold and Bryan are hoping to find time within GHC English classes to do small projects on the book. However, they did both firmly state that they hope the book will not be seen as a “school book,” but rather one that students would want to read for fun.

“I’m really excited for the book,” junior Nathan Valenzuela said, “I’ve been hearing that it’s good, and it would be a nice way to get reading.”