Oh Degrassi, how I loved you growing up. I’d race back from school as a latchkey kid (actually it was just under a blob of cement in an oversized pot plant) grab my microwave pizza and turn the dial on the old tellie to see what the gang were up to on the other side of the world. It was so grown up and I was completely sucked in. Now, I know there have been new series and my old friends have returned in different guises, but I haven’t watched those, so the following projections are based on the rose-tinted glasses of my youth watching the original – incomparable – Degrassi Junior High.

Yick Yu

The Nickel Boys, Colson Whitehead. Yick works in IT for a not for profit. He loves to cook, play basketball and is an all round nice guy, though he does sometimes struggle with the bourgeois.

Caitlin Ryan

Weather, Jenny Offill. Caitlin was always cool, conscientious and curious, I think she still is.

Joey Jeremiah

Crossroads, Jonathan Franzen. But he doesn’t actually read it all.

Christine ‘Spike’ Nelson

Girl, Woman, Other, Bernardine Evaristo. I mean, I say Caitlin was cool, but Spike was COOL, kind and anti-establishment.

Stephanie Kaye

White Feminism, Koa Beck. After realising her power and starting a career in politics, Stephanie is still learning and growing.

Lucy Fernandez

Cold Enough for Snow, Jessica Au. Because Lucy would seek out the interesting and find that jewel.

Archie ‘Snake’ Simpson

The Overstory, Richard Powers. He is a quiet achiever. Or was he loud? Hard to say next to Joey.

Which beloved character(s) have we overlooked – and more importantly – what would they be reading?