We Need New Names nestles comfortably in a long of line of coming-of-age novels. In order to better understand its role in the cannon, it might be worthwhile to spend a little time on classics, for example To Kill A Mocking Bird, Catcher in the Rye and Jane Eyre (which is explicitly referenced in the text). The context in these novels is critically different, and would shed considerable light on the particularities of Darling's voice, as well as providing helpful juxtaposition to deepen a conversation about her unique circumstances.
We Need New Names is also very much in dialogue with a rich tradition of books about immigration and cross-cultural identity. A discussion would be greatly...
