2015 Summer Reading List for G6-8

Critically acclaimed nonfiction author Deborah Hopkinson pieces together the story of the TITANIC and that fateful April night, drawing on the voices of survivors and archival photographs. In this award-winning book, critically acclaimed author Deborah Hopkinson weaves together the voices and stories of real TITANIC survivors and witnesses to the disaster -- from the stewardess Violet Jessop to Captain Arthur Rostron of the CARPATHIA, who came to the rescue of the sinking ship. Packed with heartstopping action, devastating drama, fascinating historical details, loads of archival photographs on almost every page, quotes from primary sources, and painstaking back matter, this gripping story, which follows the TITANIC and its passengers from the ship's celebrated launch at Belfast to her cataclysmic icy end, is sure to thrill and move readers.

"With a plot combining science and the supernatural, four kids are caught up in a dangerous plan concocted by the eccentric inventor, Nikola Tesla"-- After their home burns down, Nick, his younger brother, and their father move into a ramshackle Victorian house they've inherited. In the attic room, he finds a collection of old junk. After getting rid of them in a garage sale, Nick and his friends discover that all of the objects have extraordinary properties. What's more, Nick figures out that the attic is a strange magnetic vortex, which attracts all sorts of trouble.

Seventh-grader Alex Schrader's life changes when he meets Bijou Doucet, a Haitian girl recently relocated to Brooklyn, and while he is determined to win her heart Alex also learns about dating rules and Haitian culture. Seventh-grader Alex Schrader's life changes when he meets Bijou Doucet, a Haitian girl recently relocated to Brooklyn, and while he is determined to win her heart, Alex also learns about dating rules and Haitian culture.

Raina Telgemeier’s #1 New York Times bestselling, Eisner Award-winning companion to Smile! Raina can't wait to be a big sister. But once Amara is born, things aren't quite how she expected them to be. Amara is cute, but she's also a cranky, grouchy baby, and mostly prefers to play by herself. Their relationship doesn't improve much over the years, but when a baby brother enters the picture and later, something doesn't seem right between their parents, they realize they must figure out how to get along. They are sisters, after all. Raina uses her signature humor and charm in both present-day narrative and perfectly placed flashbacks to tell the story of her relationship with her sister, which unfolds during the course of a road trip from their home in San Francisco to a family reunion in Colorado.

*Follows three young operatives of a Psychic Detection Agency as they battle an epidemic of ghosts in London.* This book is part of a brilliant series for children (and parents) who love to be creeped out. It’s set in London when the city is experiencing an outbreak of ghosts who kill people if they come into contact with them. The catch: only children can see them. These stories features the kid-run ghosthunting agency, Lockwood & Co. — it’s led by the talented 14-year-old heroine Lucy Carlyle and charismatic teen Anthony Lockwood. Their job is to destroy ghosts by finding the objects in the world of the living that spirits are attached to. The social implications of the ghost epidemic are almost as chilling as the cases the agency takes on — almost. It’s a gripping read and a great intro to dystopian literature and social dynamics. You’ll want to sleep with the lights on, even after you’ve exhausted yourself by reading guiltily ahead late into the night.

A father and son embark on a road trip to a distant animal shelter to save a homeless border collie puppy.

"In San Francisco Bay there was a United States Navy base called Port Chicago. During World War II, it was a busy port where young sailors--many of them teenagers--loaded bombs and ammunition into ships bound for American troops in the Pacific. Like the entire Navy, Port Chicago was strictly segregated. All the officers giving orders were white; all the men loading bombs were black. On July 17, 1944, a massive explosion rocked Port Chicago, killing 320 servicemen and injuring hundreds more. But the truly remarkable part of the story was still to come. Surviving black sailors were taken to a nearby base and ordered to return to the same exact work. More than 200 of the men refused unless the unsafe and unfair conditions at the docks were addressed. The sailors called it standing up for justice. The Navy called it mutiny and threatened that anyone not immediately returning to work would face the firing squad. Most of the men agreed to back down. Fifty did not. This is a dramatic story of prejudice and injustice in America's armed forces during World War II, and a provocative look at a controversial group of young sailors who took a stand that helped change the course of history"--Jacket flap. In July 1944, an explosion at a California navy base killed hundreds of sailors loading munitions. Fifty black seamen, refusing to resume work in unsafe conditions, were charged with mutiny. The text contains profanity, violence, and racial slurs.

Over 2 million copies sold of the #1 New York Times and Indiebound bestseller! Don’t miss the book behind the major motion picture! In the hilarious and awkward start to this mega-bestselling series, beloved misfit Rafe Khatchadorian takes on his first year of middle school…by breaking all the rules! Rafe Khatchadorian has enough problems at home without throwing his first year of middle school into the mix. Luckily, he's got a foolproof plan for the best year ever, if only he can pull it off: break every rule in his school's oppressive Code of Conduct. Chewing gum in class--5,000 points! Running in the hallway--10,000 points! But when Rafe's game starts to catch up with him, he'll have to decide if winning is all that matters, or if he's finally ready to face the rules, bullies, and truths he's been avoiding. Beloved #1 bestselling author James Patterson's debut middle-grade novel addresses some of middle schoolers' biggest issues: bullies, first crushes, and finding out what makes each of us special, all with a hilarious main character and fantastic in-text illustrations that will have young readers begging for more! ★ "Patterson artfully weaves a deeper and more thought-provoking tale of childhood coping mechanisms and everyday school and family realities."―School Library Journal (starred review)

Eli Frieden lives in the most perfect town in the world: Serenity, New Mexico. Honesty and integrity are valued above all else. The thirty kids who live there never lie—they know it’s a short leap from that to the awful problems of other, less fortunate places. Eli has never left Serenity . . . why would he ever want to? Then one day, he bikes to the edge of the city limits and something so crazy and unexpected happens, it changes everything. Eli convinces his friends to help him investigate further, and soon it becomes clear that nothing is as it seems in Serenity. The clues mount to reveal a shocking discovery, connecting their ideal crime-free community to some of the greatest criminal masterminds ever known. The kids realize they can trust no one—least of all their own parents.

Since her father's death in a factory in the Dragonfly territories, thirteen-year-old Piper has eked out a living as a scrapper in Merrow Kingdom, but the arrival of a mysterious girl sends her on a dangerous journey to distant lands. (From LOC data.)

Lupe, Flapjack, Elirio customize their car into a low rider for the Universal Car Competition to win the cash prize that will enable them to buy their own garage.

I would describe this book as the opening to a series that you will not stop reading. This is filled with Magic, Secrets, Power, and Fear that you will read over and over again. You feel like you are sucked in with the characters of the book. Join Callum, Aaron, Tamara, and all the others, who are trying to pass the Iron Trial, even though it is forbidden? Read this book to find out, and I promise you, this will be your FAVORITE BOOK

"When best friends Lucy, Elena, and Michael receive their summer reading list, they are excited to see To Kill A Mockingbird included. But not everyone in their class shares the same enthusiasm. So they hatch a plot to get the entire town talking about the well-known Harper Lee classic"--

Captain Hook's swashbuckling daughter must avenge her infamous father's death at the jaws of the Neverland crocodile. Captain Hook's swashbuckling daughter must avenge her infamous father's death at the jaws of the Neverland crocodile. Book #1

Jackson Greene has a reputation as a prankster at Maplewood Middle School, but after the last disaster he is trying to go straight--but when it looks like Keith Sinclair may steal the election for school president from Jackson's former best friend Gabriela, he assembles a team to make sure Keith does not succeed.

Otto se pierde en un bosque prohibido cuando de repente se encuentra con tres misteriosas hermanas. En ese momento, su destino quedará ligado a una insólita búsqueda que entraña una profecía, una promesa y una armónica. Décadas más tarde, las vidas de Friedrich en Alemania, Mike en Pennsylvania, e Ivy en California, se conectan entre sí cuando la misma armónica llega a ellos. Estos niños se enfrentarán a grandes desafíos: rescatar a un padre, proteger a un hermano y mantener a una familia unida. -- Publisher description. Lost and alone in a forbidden forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and suddenly finds himself entwined in a puzzling quest involving a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica. Decades later, Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California each, in turn, become interwoven when the very same harmonica lands in their lives. All the children face daunting challenges: rescuing a father, protecting a brother, holding a family together. -- Publisher description.

Ally can't read very well and writing is hard for her too. She finds friends that help with what she does at school and with bullies. Mr. Daniels helps her the best he can by realizing that something is " wrong " with her. This is a great and inspiring book for all people to read.

Tossed into Cinderella's stepmother's reform school for fairy-tale villains after stealing a hair clip, twelve-year-old petty thief Gilly meets fellow students Jax and Kayla, who reveal the school's true evil purpose. Book #1 When petty thief Gilly, who lives with five younger brothers and sisters in a run-down boot, gets caught stealing, she is sentenced to three months at Fairy Tale Reform School, where all of the teachers are former villains, including the Big Bad Wolf, the Evil Queen, and Cinderella's Wicked Stepmother.

Eleven-year-old Ellie has never liked change. She misses fifth grade. She misses her old best friend. She even misses her dearly departed goldfish. Then one day a strange boy shows up. He's bossy. He's cranky. And weirdly, he looks a lot like Ellie's grandfather, a scientist who's always been slightly obsessed with immortality. Could this gawky teenager *really* be Grandpa Melvin? Has he finally found the secret to eternal youth? (Book flap)

Photographs and text explain how scientists in the Shark Bay Dolphin Project researched dolphins to explain what their behavior tells us about human intelligence, captive animals, and the future of the ocean. A scientific journey to study the dolphins of coastal Australia considers the many potential sources of dolphin intelligence and what dolphin behavior can inform the scientific community about human intelligence, captive animals and the future of the oceans.

A bio-engineered dog fights for its life and its right to life. From the Arthur C. Clark Award-winning author of CHILDREN OF TIME. My name is Rex. I am a good dog. Rex is also seven foot tall at the shoulder, bulletproof, bristling with heavy calibre weaponry and his voice resonates with subsonics especially designed to instil fear. With Dragon, Honey and Bees, he's part of a Multiform Assault Pack operating in the lawless anarchy of Campeche, Mexico. A genetically engineered Bioform, he's a deadly weapon in a dirty war. All he wants to be is a Good Dog. And to do that he must do exactly what Master says and Master says he's got to kill a lot of enemies. But who, exactly, are the enemies? What happens when Master is tried as a war criminal? What rights does the Geneva Convention grant weapons? Do Rex and his fellow Bioforms even have a right to exist? And what happens when Rex slips his leash? 'Detailed and clever worldbuilding... Tchaikovsky pulls off an impressive feat in making Rex's character evolution genuinely moving. Readers will be wowed' Publishers Weekly

In the tradition of Out of My Mind, Wonder, and Mockingbird, this is an intensely moving middle grade novel about being an outsider, coping with loss, and discovering the true meaning of family.

Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn't kept her from leading a quietly happy life . . . until now.
 
Suddenly Willow's world is tragically changed when her parents both die in a car crash, leaving her alone in a baffling world. The triumph of this book is that it is not a tragedy. This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read.
  


* “Willow's story is one of renewal, and her journey of rebuilding the ties that unite people as a family will stay in readers' hearts long after the last page.”—School Library Journal starred review

* “A graceful, meaningful tale featuring a cast of charming, well-rounded characters who learn sweet—but never cloying—lessons about resourcefulness, community, and true resilience in the face of loss.”—Booklist starred review

* “What sets this novel apart from the average orphan-finds-a-home book is its lack of sentimentality, its truly multicultural cast (Willow describes herself as a “person of color”; Mai and Quang-ha are of mixed Vietnamese, African American, and Mexican ancestry), and its tone. . . . Poignant.”—The Horn Book starred review

"In achingly beautiful prose, Holly Goldberg Sloan has written a delightful tale of transformation that's a celebration of life in all its wondrous, hilarious and confounding glory. Counting by 7s is a triumph."—Maria Semple, author of Where'd You Go, Bernadette

Nate Foster has big dreams. His whole life, he’s wanted to star in a Broadway show. (Heck, he’d settle for seeing a Broadway show.) But how is Nate supposed to make his dreams come true when he’s stuck in Jankburg, Pennsylvania, where no one (except his best pal Libby) appreciates a good show tune? With Libby’s help, Nate plans a daring overnight escape to New York. There’s an open casting call for E.T.: The Musical, and Nate knows this could be the difference between small-town blues and big-time stardom.

NATIONAL BOOK AWARD WINNER • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The acclaimed author of Red at the Bone tells the moving story of her childhood in mesmerizing poems. A NEWBERY HONOR BOOK • WINNER OF THE CORETTA SCOTT KING BOOK AWARD • A KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST MIDDLE GRADE BOOK OF THE CENTURY “Moving and resonant . . . captivating.”—The Wall Street Journal I am born in Ohio but the stories of South Carolina already run like rivers through my veins. Raised in South Carolina and New York, Jacqueline Woodson always felt halfway home in each place. In vivid poems, she shares what it was like to grow up as an African American in the 1960s and 70s, living with the remnants of Jim Crow and her growing awareness of the Civil Rights movement. Touching and powerful, each poem is both accessible and emotionally charged, providing a glimpse into a child’s soul as she finds her voice through writing and searches for her place in the world. Teeming with feeling and deeply personal, Brown Girl Dreaming is the groundbreaking chronicle of Woodson’s journey to storytelling, and a beautiful portrayal of physical, emotional, and spiritual growth.