That is entirely possible, and maybe I will do so. But that would be irrelevant to this thread. The point is what I thought of it as a high school student, whether the book (or the way in which it was taught) had any educational value to me at that time, and whether it might have turned me off to the idea of reading if I had not already been interested in reading. There are many books I’ve read post-high school (some enjoyable, some not so much) from which I’ve learned a lot, but which would have been meaningless to me as a teenager, and I never would have picked them up if I had learned in school that reading was just a dreary chore and an externally-imposed obligation.

In one of my college classes we read A Small Place by Jamaica Kincaid. I hated it, but I’m glad I read it because it gave me a chance to think about certain ideas and about WHY I disagree with them, based in part on my own knowledge and life experience as an older, returning student. But I’m glad I didn’t read A Small Place in high school. It would have accomplished nothing at that time, and furthermore, the prof wasn’t really interested in discussing alternative perspectives; his perspective (it’s a “wonderful” book, “let’s not tear it apart” with any different views) was the only one that mattered. This was generally my impression with regard to literary analysis in high school: that the teacher’s interpretation was the “right” one, and the students were expected to reach the same conclusion.

By contrast, I had one college class in which we discussed Beatles songs, and the prof was interested in each student’s ideas. She even made the point that the Beatles themselves thought that other peoples’ interpretations of their songs were perfectly valid. I learned a lot from that prof, and not just about the Beatles.

I've read Life of Pi and found it very interesting. Have not seen the movie.

>the curriculum would be all YA novels and comic books

I couldn't disagree more. I read much "true" literature on my own in high school and earlier. Even reluctant readers in high school could probably take an interest in Jack London, Dostoyevsky, Dickens, or whatever, if they have a chance to experiment a bit and find something they can relate to.

Lord of the Flies was a whole-class read in my 6th grade class. Would I have liked it better if I had read it a few years later (and if I didn't have to listen as the slow, stumbling readers take their turns to read aloud)? Maybe. Would I find Gatsby more relatable now than I did in high school? Maybe. On the other hand, I did re-read The Mysterious Stranger a long time after high school and found it just as unrewarding as ever.

I'm aware that some teachers like to hit up garage sales and used-book stores, building up their own personal libraries (not school-funded) to share with their students. That's something that can be built up over time.

And I agree that sometimes it's worthwhile to have everyone read the same thing for some of the reasons you stated. I just feel that some teachers take it much too far, having multiple assigned readings followed by dry discussions on theme. FWIW, John Lennon wrote "I Am the Walrus" to poke fun at those who try to over-analyze his songs.

How about this instead: have students read "The Highwayman" by Alfred Noyes and then have them produce a short play.

Students don’t get to “choose whether or not they learn algebra”
(as another commenter wrote) any more than they choose whether or not
to learn literature, but teachers have some leeway in how
they teach those subjects. I can think of some creative ways to make
algebra or geometry more engaging to students, but perhaps history
would make a better example of my point. Throughout
my schooling, history was all about textbooks and fill-in-the-blank
worksheets. If the teachers had been purposely trying
to convince me that history is the world’s dullest subject, they
could hardly have done it any better. I didn’t “learn history”
in school; I memorized a few facts, took the tests, and quickly
forgot about it. It was mostly after high school, and mostly on my
own, that I discovered how fascinating history really is. I’m sure
many people never make that leap and never
gain the benefits of knowing history. The same could be said of
literature.