Fiction
- Avi. The Seer of the Shadows – Horace Carpetine does not believe in ghosts. Do you?!
- Balcarcel, Rachel. The Other Half of Happy – 12-year-old Quijana likes to say that she used to be Pangaea. Unsplit. Not half white or half Latina. But that was before her Guatemalan cousins moved to town and before her dad asked her to speak some Spanish.
- Bryant, Jen. Pieces of Georgia – Georgia McCoy is an artist. A few days after her 13th birthday, she receives an unexpected gift-a strange, formal letter, all typed up and signed anonymous. Things begin to change.
- Carvell, Marlene. Sweetgrass Basket (Historical Novel) – In prose poetry and alternating voices, Marlene Carvell weaves a heartbreakingly beautiful story based on the real-life experiences of Native American children.
- Cummings, Priscilla. Blindsided – 14-year-old Natalie’s world is about to be turned upside down with the news that she will soon go blind.
- Curry, Jane Louise. The Black Canary – James has grown up in a musical family. His family assumes that James will pursue music as well. James has other things in mind until he discovers a portal that takes him back in time.
- Deuker, Carl. Payback – Another entertaining and readable football story that keeps you in suspense along the way!
- Diaz, Alexandra. The Only Road – Twelve-year-old Jaime makes the treacherous and life-changing journey from his home in Guatemala to live with his older brother in the United States.
- Draper, Sharon. Out of My Mind – This story will forever change how we all look at anyone with a disability. Perfect for fans of RJ Palacio’s Wonder.
- Falkner, Brian. Tomorrow Code – Three young New Zealanders square off against a biological apocalypse in this scientific page turner.
- Fox, Helen. Eager – Gavin and Fleur’s much-loved robot, Grumps, is running down. A scientist friend loans them an EGR3, an experimental new robot, to help Grumps. Your house watches you, knows your secrets, and talks to you.
- Gorman, Carol. Games – Two eighth graders are rivals in every way, and with two fights in the first week of school, they’ve set the stage for a yearlong showdown.
- Haddix, Margaret. Claim to Fame – Lindsay was five when she became a TV star. It seemed she was set for life—until she had a breakdown when she was eleven. Lindsay developed a very dangerous sense of ESP – the ability to hear what anyone was thinking about her, at anytime, anywhere in the world.
- Han, Jenny. Shug – Annemarie “Shug” Wilcox is clever and brave and true (on the inside anyway). She’s about to become your new best friend in this enchanting middle grade novel.
- Herlong, M.H. The Great Wide Sea – Ben, Dylan, and Gerry are still mourning their mother’s death when their dad decides to buy a boat and take them on a year-long sailing trip.
- Hilmo, Tess. Cinnamon Moon – On the same day as the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, 250 miles away in Peshtigo, Wisconsin, there was an even more devastating fire.
- Hiranandani, Veera. The Night Diary – Nisha and her twin brother are half-Muslim, half-Hindu siblings living with their father in India just before the time of Partition. When the word comes that their town is to become part of the new Pakistan state, Nisha, her brother, her Hindu father and grandmother must make the journey to the Indian order.
- Key, Watt. Alabama Moon – For as long as Moon can remember, he lived out in the forest in a shelter with his father. When his father dies, Moon follows his father’s last instructions: to travel to Alaska to find others like themselves.
- Marsh, Kathleen. Nowhere Boy – Set against the backdrop of the Syrian refugee crisis, a a gripping, heartwarming story of resilience, friendship and everyday heroes.
- Moore, David Barclay. The Stars Beneath Our Feet – A boy tries to steer a safe path through the projects in Harlem in the wake of his brother’s death.
- Parker Rhodes, Jewell. Towers Falling – A powerful novel set fifteen years after the 9/11 attacks in a classroom of students who cannot remember the event but live through the aftermath of its cultural shift.
- Reynolds, Jason. As Brave As You – When two brothers decide to prove how brave they are, everything backfires—literally—in this “pitch-perfect” contemporary novel.
- Schmidt, Gary. Just Like That – A story involving multiple plot strands, weaving in themes of grief, loss, redemption, achievement, and love.
- Stevenson, Noelle. Nimona – Nemeses! Dragons! Science! Symbolism! All of these and more await in this brilliant graphic novel!
- Tanner, Lian. Icebreaker (The Icebreaker Trilogy) – Twelve-year-old Petrel is an outcast, living on an ancient icebreaker that has been following the same ocean course for 300 years.
Series Books
- Horowitz, Anthony. Stormbreaker Series
- Jacques, Brian. Redwall Series
- Kova, Elise. Falling Kingdoms Series
Nonfiction
- Aronson, Marc. Trapped: How the World Rescued 33 Miners From 2,000 Feet Below the Chilean Desert
- Burns, Loree Griffin. Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam, and the Science of Ocean Motion
- Capuzzo, Mike. Close to Shore: the Terrifying Shark Attacks of 1916
- Deneberg, Dennis and Lorraine Roscoes. 50 American Heroes Every Kid should Meet, 2nd Revised Edition
- Drimmer, Stephanie Warren. The Book of Heroines: Tales of History’s Gutsiest Gals
- Engle, Margarita. Enchanted Air: Two Cultures, Two Wings
- Freedman, Russell. The War to End all Wars: World War I
- Jarrow, Gail. Spooked: How a Radio Broadcast and the War of the Worlds Sparked the 1938 Invasion of America
- Lowery, Lynda Blackmon. Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom: My Story of the 1965 Selma Voting Rights March
- Park, Linda Sue. A Long Walk to Water: Based on a True Story
- Shetterly, Margot Lee. Hidden Figures – Young Readers’ Edition
- Takei, George. They Called Us Enemy
- Warren, Andrea. Escape from Saigon: How a Vietnam War Orphan Became an American Boy
*The above suggested texts cover a wide variety of topics and genres. Another good place to find quality text is at your local library so consider visiting often! As we know, student choice and interest drive a passion for the love of reading.
