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A Separate Peace John Knowles
Gene Forrester looks back fifteen
years to a World War II year in
which he and his best friend Phineas
were roommates in a New
Hampshire boarding school. Their
friendship is marred by Finny's
crippling fall, an event for which
Gene is responsible and one that
eventually leads to tragedy.
The Skin I’m In Sharon Flake
Thirteen-year-old Maleeka
Madison, insecure about her very
dark skin, rejects the support of a
new teacher, Miss Saunders, whose
skin looks blotched because of a
rare medical condition--but soon
Maleeka begins to see that Miss
Saunders could be a role model, and
that she must learn to love herself
and accept love from others.
Don’t You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dumphrey Margaret Peterson Haddix
In the journal she is keeping for
English class, sixteen-year-old
Tish chronicles the changes in
her life when her abusive father
abandons her and her brother,
and her mother follows him.
Little Women Louisa May Alcott
American author Louisa May
Alcott's 1869 novel about four
New England sisters who come of
age during the Civil War.
A young boy living in the Florida
backwoods is forced to decide the
fate of a fawn he has lovingly
raised as a pet.
Twisted Laurie Halse Anderson
After finally getting noticed by
someone other than school bullies and
his ever-angry father, seventeen-year-
old Tyler enjoys his tough new
reputation and the attentions of a
popular girl, but when life starts to go
bad again, he must choose between
transforming himself or giving in to
his destructive thoughts.
The Chocolate War Robert Cormier A high school freshman discovers
the devastating consequences of
refusing to join in the school's
annual fund raising drive and
arousing the wrath of the school
bullies.
The Yearling Marjorie Keenan Rawlings
R i s i n g 8 t h
G r a d e r s
Theme:
Decisions and Realizations
Berkeley County School District
Summer Reading
Fiction Texts
Good Enough Paula Yoo A Korean American teenager
tries to please her parents by
getting into an Ivy League
college, but a new guy in school
and her love of the violin tempt
her in new directions. Wonder R.J. Palacio
Ten-year-old Auggie Pullman, who was
born with extreme facial abnormalities
and was not expected to survive, goes
from being home-schooled to entering
fifth grade at a private middle school in
Manhattan, which entails enduring the
taunting and fear of his classmates as he
struggles to be seen as just another
Student.
Island of the Blue Dolphins, Scott O’Dell
Records the courage and
self-reliance of an Indian girl who
lived alone for eighteen years on an
isolated island off the California
coast when her tribe emigrated and
she was left behind.
Thirteen Reasons Why
Jay Asher When Clay Jenkins receives a
box containing thirteen cassette
tapes recorded by his classmate
Hannah, who committed suicide,
he spends the night crisscrossing
their town, listening to Hannah's
voice recounting the events
leading up to her death.
The Invention of Hugo Cabret Brian Selznick
When Twelve year old Hugo, an
orphan living and repairing clocks
within the walls of a Paris train station
in 1931, meets a mysterious toy seller
and his Goddaughter, his undercover
life and his biggest secret are
jeopardized.
Out of My Mind Sharon M. Draper
Considered by many to be mentally
retarded, a brilliant, impatient
fifth-grader with cerebral palsy
discovers a technological device that
will allow her to speak for the first
time.
Skinny Donna Cooner
After undergoing gastric-bypass sur-
gery, a self-loathing, obese teenaged
girl loses weight and makes the brave
decision to start participating in high
school life, including pursuing her
dream of becoming a singer and find-
ing love.
The Aurora County All-Stars
Deborah Wiles Twelve-year-old House Jackson, team
captain and star pitcher of the Aurora
County All-Stars, is finally ready to play
again after being sidelined for a year with
a broken elbow, but a standoff ensues
when the team's big game is scheduled for
the same day as Aurora County's two-
hundredth anniversary pageant--an event
directed by the very girl who caused
Jackson's injury.
Gym Candy Carl Dueker
Mick Johnson works hard for a
placement on the varsity team
during his freshman year, and
decides to use steroids in order to
hold onto his edge, despite the
consequences to his health and
social life.
True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, Avi
Thirteen-year-old Charlotte Doyle, the
only passenger on a voyage from Eng-
land to America in 1832, must take
serious matters into her own hands
when she learns that the captain is
murderous
The Final Four Paul Volponi
Four players at the Final Four of the
NCAA basketball tournament
struggle with the pressures of
tournament play and the expectations
of society at large.
Anne of Green Gables L.M. Montgomery
Anne, an eleven-year-old orphan, is
sent by mistake to live with a lonely,
middle-aged brother and sister on a
Prince Edward Island farm and
proceeds to make an indelible
impression on everyone around her.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
J.K. Rowling
Rescued from the neglect of his aunt
and uncle, a young boy proves his
worth while attending Hogwart’s
School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Stargirl Jerry Spinelli
Stargirl, a teen who animates
quiet Mica High with her
colorful personality, suddenly
finds herself shunned for her
refusal to conform.
That Was Then, This is Now S.E. Hinton
Sixteen-year-old Mark and
Bryon have been like brothers
since childhood, but now, as
their involvement with girls,
gangs, and drugs increases, their
relationship seems to gradually
disintegrate.
The Fighting Ground Avi
Thirteen-year-old Jonathan goes
off to fight in the Revolutionary
War and discovers the real war is
being fought within himself.
Cut Patricia McCormick
While confined to a mental hospital,
thirteen-year-old Callie slowly
comes to understand some of the
reasons behind her self-mutilation,
and gradually starts to get better.
Where the Red Fern Grows Wilson Rawls
Billy Coleman wanted nothing more in
the world than to own a pair of hounds
for hunting racoons. After two long
years of hard work and determination,
Billy earned enough money to become
the proud owner of the two most excep-
tional hunting dogs the Ozarks had ever
seen.
Informational Texts
Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul: Stories of Life, Love, and Learning Mark Canfield A collection of essays that offer
inspiration to teens, providing
lessons on relationships, friend-
ship, family, love and kindness,
learning, death, success, courage,
and determination.
Fast Food Nation
Eric Schlosser
Traces the history of the fast food
industry and discusses how it
arose in postwar America.
Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff for Teens
Richard Carlson
Presents one hundred tips for teens
to live more happy, healthy, and
ethical lives.
Boys Who Rocked the World
Michelle Roehm McCann
Girls Who Rocked the World Michelle Roehm McCann
Recounts the stories of forty-six
women throughout history who
impacted the world when they
were teenagers or younger, cover-
ing Harriet Tubman, Coco Chanel,
S.E. Hinton, Maya Lin, and others.
Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story
Gregg Lewis
Captures the physician's fight to
beat the odds, the secret behind
his outstanding accomplishments,
and what drives him to take risks.
Recounts the stories of forty-six men
throughout history who impacted the
world when they were teenagers or
younger, covering Wolfgang Amadeus
Mozart, Steve Jobs, Crazy Horse, Ste-
phen King, and others.
Mistakes that Worked Charlotte Jones
Presents the stories behind forty
things that were invented or
named by accident, including
aspirin, X-rays, Frisbees, Silly
Putty, and Velcro.
Case Closed? Nine Mysteries Solved by Modern Science Susan Hughes
Examines how developments in
modern science, such as DNA
analysis and spectroscopy, have
helped to reopen archaeological
mysteries about ancient cities,
Egypt's first female pharaoh, a
missing expedition to find the
Northwest Passage, and more,
with illustrations, maps, and
photographs.
I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness to the Blind Side and Beyond
Michael Oher
The football star made famous in
the hit film (and book) The Blind
Side reflects on how far he has
come from the circumstances of
his youth. Michael Oher shares his
personal account of his story in
this best seller.
I Did it Without Thinking: True Stories About Impulsive Decisions that Changed Lives Bob Hugel
Have you ever made an impulsive
decision without thinking of the
consequences? Before you find
yourself saying, "Oops, I did it
again," check out this book for
pointers to keep you headed in the
right direction.
Real Kids, Real Stories, Real Change: Courageous Actions Around
the World
Garth Sundem
As young readers meet these boys
and girls from around the world,
they may wonder, “What kind of
hero lives inside of me?”
Outliers
Malcolm Gladwell
The author explores why some
people are high achievers and
others are not, citing culture,
family, and upbringing as possi-
ble reasons some people are not
as successful as others.
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