Many American schools do force kids to read Shakespeare, Homer, etc. even though there are many more equivalent books/texts to read which are much more accessible to contemporary readers. Which is why West Side Story has been used since the 1960s as an introduction to Shakespeare in a contemporary vein.

Of course, once the kids have zipped through West Side Story, they are force-fed Romeo and Juliet.

I agree with Amos--give the kids a large number of books to choose from, and let them self-select their reading material. Much more difficult for the teachers, but oh so much better for the budding reader.