Picture Books with 14 Year Olds? REALLY?

In the late 80's, much to my surprise, I found myself teaching 2nd grade in Los Angeles. I never planned on becoming a school teacher but after art graduate school, in the middle of the last great Recession, there weren't many options for those of us with MA's in studio art. (Are there ever?) LA needed warm bodies- no degree required- so we signed up. Little did I know that it was the beginning of an odyssey in education- no destination in site- now almost three decades in.
I didn't know much about teaching at first. I went to school at night for the piece of paper that certified that I knew what I was doing, but really, I learned on the job and it was my students who were the teachers. The first day of school the students taught me the pledge of allegiance in Spanish. The second day of school they taught me some cool clapping games. On the third day of school they taught me the power of a story shared.
Admittedly, I was a bit at a loss as to how to productively fill six hours with these active and eager eight year olds. At home, after the exhausting but exhilarating second day of school, I dug through my childhood boxes and found the book, Frederick, by Leo Leoni, about a mouse who, rather than help the mouse clan gather nuts and seeds for the winter gathers words and colors: an artist making his contribution.
The next morning as I gathered the children around me I hoped "Read Aloud Time" would help pass a quiet ten minutes or so. Half an hour later the children were still debating the fairness of Frederick's actions. There were those who felt Frederick should have helped gather some food, and there were those who believed that Frederick contributed what he could. And finally, there were the children who felt Frederick should have gathered some food along with his words and colors. Eight year olds it turns out are very passionate about fairness.
Although I've moved on to colder climes and older students I still read picture books aloud now and then. I have many favorites, such as Ruth Vanderzee's Mississippi Morning which I use with my mask making unit, but I hadn't shared Frederick with a class since teaching little ones. I came across it recently and decided to read it just prior to my artist biography unit, and guess what? Fourteen year olds gather around just as eagerly for a story and are just as passionate about fairness as eight year olds.