TJ Crowley Added to Catholics Read; Wichita Audio Drama Enters Catholic Education Network

WICHITA, Kan. — The Real Education of TJ Crowley: Coming of Age on the Redline has been added to the Catholics Read book list maintained by the Association of Catholic Publishers, placing the Wichita-based project into a national network used by Catholic schools, parish programs, and reading groups.

One story, two formats, now on Catholics Read.

An Audie Award–winning full-cast audio drama paired with a word-for-word Scriptbook, designed for read-and-listen use in classrooms and parish groups, and now featured by the Association of Catholic Publishers’ national reading platform.

The listing is now live at Catholics Read, with companion classroom materials available through The Real Education Project.

“We see Catholic schools and parish communities as a natural place for this story,” said Grant Overstake, publisher and producer of the project. “These are communities that are willing to look directly at history and ask what it requires of us. That’s where this work belongs.”

The production received the Audie Award for Best Young Adult Audiobook, recognizing distinction in performance, direction, and sound design.

Set in Wichita in 1968, the story follows a 13-year-old boy confronting racial division shaped by redlining and neighborhood boundaries. The narrative unfolds through specific relationships and decisions rather than historical summary, allowing listeners and readers to experience events as they happen.

The read-and-listen format allows students to follow the text while hearing the dialogue performed. In classroom settings, teachers can pause at exact lines and guide discussion based on a shared experience.

Recognized for excellence in audio storytelling, including the 2025 Audie Award for Best Young Adult Audiobook.

Why Catholic educators are paying attention

Catholic education has long approached questions of justice through the language of human dignity and responsibility to neighbor. In practice, those discussions can stall when they begin at the level of argument.

Catholic education has long approached questions of justice through the language of human dignity and responsibility to neighbor. In practice, those discussions can stall when they begin at the level of argument.

Students and educators engage The Real Education of TJ Crowley through read-and-listen discussion in classroom settings.

This project begins with experience instead of argument.

Students and educators engage The Real Education of TJ Crowley through read-and-listen discussion in classroom settings.

Students enter the material through story. They hear how people speak, observe how situations unfold, and then return to those moments in discussion. Teachers introduce moral language after the experience, not before it.

Educators using the format report that students refer back to specific scenes and dialogue, creating a shared reference point that keeps discussion grounded.

The fact that the central character is not Catholic has also made the work usable across mixed classrooms. The story does not assume agreement. It asks for attention.

The Real Education of TJ Crowley is a dual-format work designed for classroom and group use: A full-cast audio drama and Scriptbook Edition that matches the audio word for word

Advisory for educators and parents

The audio drama and Scriptbook include mature themes and historically accurate language, including racial slurs, used in context. The material is recommended for mature students (approximately ages 13 and up) and adult groups.

The work is intended for guided discussion in classroom, parish, or small-group settings.

Why this moment matters

The Catholics Read platform is used by dioceses, schools, and parish communities to identify titles suitable for instruction and discussion.

Catholics Read is an initiative of the Association of Catholic Publishers that promotes selected titles through regular email features and outreach to Catholic leaders and readers in the pews.

The Association of Catholic Publishers (ACP) is a U.S.-based trade organization that represents publishers producing materials for the Catholic market. It fosters collaboration, professional development, and advocacy within the Catholic publishing industry, serving as a hub for organizations that create resources for faith formation, education, and liturgical life.

Inclusion places TJ Crowley within an established Catholic reading and communication network at a time when educators are looking for ways to engage difficult history without losing students at the outset.

“This is not about presenting answers from the outside,” Overstake said. “It’s about placing a story where it can be worked with—inside classrooms, inside parishes, in real conversations.”

Catholics Read listing:
https://catholicsread.org/current-titles/f/the-real-education-of-tj-crowley-coming-of-age-on-the-redline

Classroom resources:
https://real-education-tj-crowle-1naiyry.gamma.site/classroom

For review materials, interview access, or piloting TJ Crowley in your classroom, contact Grain Valley Publishing.