Rising Eighth Graders’ Summer Reading List
Reading quality novels during the summer break is a good way for students to bridge the gap between 7th and 8th grade. Research shows that students who do not engage in cognitive activities during the summer lose one to three months of learning. However, summer reading not only helps students retain the skills they need to enjoy academic success but also offers them enriching experiences through books. Students who read during the summer are more likely to . . .
· maintain the fluency required for success
· maintain and increase their vocabulary
· learn of the resources provided by the public library
· talk with family and friends about books
· discover new interests or hobbies
· discover the enjoyment of reading
During the summer, all ECMS 8th Grade students should read two books that are appropriate for school and written on a challenging reading level in preparation for the 2015-2016 school year. Students must select one book each from two of the following three categories (for instance—one science fiction/dystopian novel and one historical fiction OR one historical fiction and one biography):
1. Science Fiction/Dystopian Society--Suggested titles include, but are not limited to:
Feed by M. T. Anderson
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Jennifer Government by Max Barry
The Voyage Begun by Nancy Bond
Sky Horizon by David Brin
The Brief History of the Dead by Kevin Brockmeier
Airhead by Meg Cabot
Obernewtyn series by Isobelle Carmody
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
Girl on Fire and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Into the Forest by Jean Hegland
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
Children of Men by P.D. James
Out of the Silent Planet (and sequels) by C. S. Lewis
Son by Lois Lowry
Messenger by Lois Lowry
Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry
The Declaration by Gemma Malley
Z is for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien
1984 by George Orwell
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
The Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld
Rash by Pete Hautman
Fearless by Tim Lott
The Tomorrow series by John Marsden
The Road by Cormac McCarthy.
The Girl Who Owned a City by O. T. Nelson
The dead & the gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Maze Runner series by James Dashner
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Ender’s Shadow by Orson Scott Card
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
The High Crusade by Poul Anderson
Orbital Resonance by John Barnes
Shade’s Children by Garth Nix
Where Late the Sweet Bird Sang by Kate Wilhelm
Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsden
Virtual War series by Gloria Skurzynski
Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Incarnate by Jodi Meadows
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
True Sight by David Stahler
Unwind by Neal Shusterman
The City of Ember series by Jeanne Du Prau
Rash by Pete Hautman
Birthmarked by Caragh M. O’Brien
The Declaration by Gemma Malley
A Taste of Rabbit by Linda Zuckerman
Incarceron by Catherine Fisbe
Divergent series by Veronica Roth
Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
Uglies series by Scott Westerfield
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
2. Historical Fiction--Suggested titles include, but are not limited to:
Markus Zusak, The Book Thief
Laurie Halse Anderson, Fever 1793
Laurie Halse Anderson, Chains
Jennifer Donnelly, Revolution
Karen Hesse, Out of the Dust (free verse)
Elizabeth George Speare, The Witch of Blackbird Pond
Patrice Kindl, Keeping the Castle
Karen Cushman, Catherine, Called Birdy
Celia Rees, Pirates!
Sharon M. Draper, Copper Sun
Cynthia Voigt, Tree be Leaf
Mark Twain, Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Irene Hunt, Across Five Aprils
William Armstrong, Sounder
Mary Jane Auch, Ashes of Roses
Linda Holeman, Search of the Moon King’s Daughter
Janet McNaughton, An Earthly Knight
Michael Cadnum, In a Dark Wood
Karen Cushman, Matilde Bone
Rosemary Sutcliff, Knight’s Fee
Rosemary Sutcliff, Witch’s Brat
Paula Fox, Slave Dancer
Mary Hooper, Newes from the Dead
Ann Turnball, Forged in the Fire
Elizabeth Bunce, A Curse Dark as Gold
Nicola Morgan, The Highwayman’s Footsteps
Joseph Bruchac, Winter People
James Lincoln Collier, My Brother Sam Is Dead
Sid Hite, Stick and Whittle
Robert Newton Peck, Cowboy Ghost
Timothy Tocher, Chief Sunrise, John McGraw, and Me
Jean Thesman, The Storyteller’s Daughter
http://www.historicalnovels.info/Young-Adult-Historical-Novels.html This site categorizes novels by period and culture from prehistoric to the wild West.
http://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/young-adult-historical-fiction
3. Biography/Autobiography--Suggested titles include, but are not limited to:
MAYA ANGELOU I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Maya Angelou. 1970. An African American writer, poet, and actress traces her coming of age.
RUSSELL BAKER Growing Up. Russell Baker. 1982. A columnist with a sense of humor takes a gentle look at his childhood in Baltimore during the Depression.
MARIE CURIE Madam Curie: a Biography. Eve Curie. 1937.
In sharing personal papers and her own memories, a daughter pays tribute to her unique and generous mother, a scientific genius.
FREDERICK DOUGLASS Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself. Frederick Douglass. 1845.
Former slave and famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass describes the horrors of his enslavement and eventual escape.
RICHARD FEYNMAN Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman: Adventures of a Curious Character. Richard P. Feynman as told to Ralph Leighton. 1985. This Nobel Prize-winning physicist was also a bongo drummer, a practical joker, and a loving husband.
ANNE FRANK Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl. Anne Frank. 1952 Through the diary she kept while in hiding, thirteen-year-old Anne Frank puts a human face on the Holocaust experience.
JOHN HOCKENBERRY Moving Violations: War Zones, Wheelchairs, and Declarations of Independence. John Hockenberry. 1995.
Journalist Hockenberry is fearless and funny as he relates the personal and professional experiences he encounters from his wheelchair.
STONEWALL JACKSON Stonewall Jackson: The Man, the Soldier, the Legend. James I. Robertson. 1997 Both the genius and the failings of this confederate Civil War general are chronicled in this meticulous account.
JI-LI JIANG Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution. Ji-li Jiang. 1997 A young Chinese girl must make difficult choices when the government urges her to repudiate her ancestors and inform on her own parents.
MARY KARR The Liars' Club: A Memoir. Mary Karr. 1995. Growing up in "a family of liars and drunks" is never easy, and yet, despite alcoholism, rape, and other dark secrets, the author makes childhood in an East Texas refinery town sound as funny as it was painful.
HELEN KELLER The Story of My Life. Helen Keller. 1902. Overcoming deafness and blindness to become an outstanding citizen, Helen Keller embodies courage, passion, and perseverance.
YELENA KHANGA Soul to Soul: A Black Russian American Family, 1865-1992. Yelena Khanga and Susan Jacoby. 1992. A young Russian journalist of African American and Jewish heritage analyzes and compares attitudes on race, religion, and sexism in Russia and America.
JAMAICA KINCAID My Brother. Jamaica Kincaid. 1997. The author returns to the Caribbean island of her birth to help care for her younger brother who is dying of AIDS.
MERIWETHER LEWIS Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West. Stephen E. Ambrose. 1996. Lewis and Clark brave the wilds of North America in this vivid account of exploration and adventure.
JAMES McBRIDE AND RUTH McBRIDE-JORDAN
The Color of Water: a Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother. James McBride. 1996. McBride blends his story with that of his mother, who battled poverty and racism to raise twelve children.
MARK MATHABANE Kaffir Boy: The True Story of a Black Youth's Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa. Mark Mathabane. 1986.
Growing up under the brutalities of apartheid South Africa, Mathabane describes the growing unrest in his country and his eventual escape through his ties to the tennis community.
VED MEHTA Sound-Shadows of the New World. Ved Mehta. 1985.
Leaving his home, family, and culture behind, a blind Indian boy travels to Arkansas to attend a special school where he is challenged by handicap, loneliness, poor preparation, and culture shock.
ANN MOODY Coming of Age in Mississippi. Ann Moody. 1968.
One of the first brave young African American students to participate in a lunch counter sit-in, Moody becomes a heroine of the civil rights movement.
PAT MORA House of Houses. Pat Mora. 1997. With magic and imagination, author Pat Mora weaves the voices of her ancestors into her own personal account of growing up in a Mexican-American family in El Paso, Texas.
LUIS RODRIGUEZ Always Running: La Vida Loca, Gang Days in L.A. Luis Rodriguez. 1993 Rodriguez tells the story of his life in a Los Angeles gang and his later experiences as a Chicano activist.
RICHARD RODRIGUEZ Hunger of Memory: the Education of Richard Rodriguez: an Autobiography. Richard Rodriguez. 1982.
Rodriguez's journey through the educational system leads to his belief that family, culture, and language must be left behind to succeed in mainstream America.
TSAR NICHOLAS ROMANOV AND TSARINA ALEXANDRA
Nicholas and Alexandra. Robert K. Massie 1967 At the brink of revolution, the last Tsar of Russia and his family become victims of their own mismanagement and personal problems.
ELEANOR ROOSEVELT Eleanor Roosevelt: Vol. 1:1884-1933. Blanche Wiesen Cook. 1992. Born into a privileged world, Eleanor Roosevelt became a champion of the underprivileged and a fighter for human rights.
HARRY S. TRUMAN Truman. David G. McCullough. 1992. This notable president earned America's respect by helping to end World War II and reshape the world for postwar peace.
TOBIAS WOLFF This Boy's Life: A Memoir. Tobias Wolff. 1989
In and out of trouble in his youth, this charter member of the "Bad Boys' Club" survives a boyhood that stretches from Florida to the Pacific Northwest.
RICHARD WRIGHT. Black Boy: A Record of Childhood and Youth. Richard Wright. 1945. Wright recalls his pre-World War II youth when racial and personal obstacles seemed insurmountable.
Students will complete the attached Preview and Review for both novels. Worksheets are due the first week of the school year, and students will take the Accelerated Reader (AR) tests for grades that will be counted in the first quarter.
Reading quality novels during the summer break is a good way for students to bridge the gap between 7th and 8th grade. Research shows that students who do not engage in cognitive activities during the summer lose one to three months of learning. However, summer reading not only helps students retain the skills they need to enjoy academic success but also offers them enriching experiences through books. Students who read during the summer are more likely to . . .
· maintain the fluency required for success
· maintain and increase their vocabulary
· learn of the resources provided by the public library
· talk with family and friends about books
· discover new interests or hobbies
· discover the enjoyment of reading
During the summer, all ECMS 8th Grade students should read two books that are appropriate for school and written on a challenging reading level in preparation for the 2015-2016 school year. Students must select one book each from two of the following three categories (for instance—one science fiction/dystopian novel and one historical fiction OR one historical fiction and one biography):
1. Science Fiction/Dystopian Society--Suggested titles include, but are not limited to:
Feed by M. T. Anderson
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
Jennifer Government by Max Barry
The Voyage Begun by Nancy Bond
Sky Horizon by David Brin
The Brief History of the Dead by Kevin Brockmeier
Airhead by Meg Cabot
Obernewtyn series by Isobelle Carmody
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
Girl on Fire and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Into the Forest by Jean Hegland
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
Children of Men by P.D. James
Out of the Silent Planet (and sequels) by C. S. Lewis
Son by Lois Lowry
Messenger by Lois Lowry
Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry
The Declaration by Gemma Malley
Z is for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien
1984 by George Orwell
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
The Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld
Rash by Pete Hautman
Fearless by Tim Lott
The Tomorrow series by John Marsden
The Road by Cormac McCarthy.
The Girl Who Owned a City by O. T. Nelson
The dead & the gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Maze Runner series by James Dashner
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Ender’s Shadow by Orson Scott Card
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
The High Crusade by Poul Anderson
Orbital Resonance by John Barnes
Shade’s Children by Garth Nix
Where Late the Sweet Bird Sang by Kate Wilhelm
Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsden
Virtual War series by Gloria Skurzynski
Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Incarnate by Jodi Meadows
The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness
True Sight by David Stahler
Unwind by Neal Shusterman
The City of Ember series by Jeanne Du Prau
Rash by Pete Hautman
Birthmarked by Caragh M. O’Brien
The Declaration by Gemma Malley
A Taste of Rabbit by Linda Zuckerman
Incarceron by Catherine Fisbe
Divergent series by Veronica Roth
Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver
Uglies series by Scott Westerfield
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
2. Historical Fiction--Suggested titles include, but are not limited to:
Markus Zusak, The Book Thief
Laurie Halse Anderson, Fever 1793
Laurie Halse Anderson, Chains
Jennifer Donnelly, Revolution
Karen Hesse, Out of the Dust (free verse)
Elizabeth George Speare, The Witch of Blackbird Pond
Patrice Kindl, Keeping the Castle
Karen Cushman, Catherine, Called Birdy
Celia Rees, Pirates!
Sharon M. Draper, Copper Sun
Cynthia Voigt, Tree be Leaf
Mark Twain, Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Irene Hunt, Across Five Aprils
William Armstrong, Sounder
Mary Jane Auch, Ashes of Roses
Linda Holeman, Search of the Moon King’s Daughter
Janet McNaughton, An Earthly Knight
Michael Cadnum, In a Dark Wood
Karen Cushman, Matilde Bone
Rosemary Sutcliff, Knight’s Fee
Rosemary Sutcliff, Witch’s Brat
Paula Fox, Slave Dancer
Mary Hooper, Newes from the Dead
Ann Turnball, Forged in the Fire
Elizabeth Bunce, A Curse Dark as Gold
Nicola Morgan, The Highwayman’s Footsteps
Joseph Bruchac, Winter People
James Lincoln Collier, My Brother Sam Is Dead
Sid Hite, Stick and Whittle
Robert Newton Peck, Cowboy Ghost
Timothy Tocher, Chief Sunrise, John McGraw, and Me
Jean Thesman, The Storyteller’s Daughter
http://www.historicalnovels.info/Young-Adult-Historical-Novels.html This site categorizes novels by period and culture from prehistoric to the wild West.
http://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/young-adult-historical-fiction
3. Biography/Autobiography--Suggested titles include, but are not limited to:
MAYA ANGELOU I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Maya Angelou. 1970. An African American writer, poet, and actress traces her coming of age.
RUSSELL BAKER Growing Up. Russell Baker. 1982. A columnist with a sense of humor takes a gentle look at his childhood in Baltimore during the Depression.
MARIE CURIE Madam Curie: a Biography. Eve Curie. 1937.
In sharing personal papers and her own memories, a daughter pays tribute to her unique and generous mother, a scientific genius.
FREDERICK DOUGLASS Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself. Frederick Douglass. 1845.
Former slave and famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass describes the horrors of his enslavement and eventual escape.
RICHARD FEYNMAN Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman: Adventures of a Curious Character. Richard P. Feynman as told to Ralph Leighton. 1985. This Nobel Prize-winning physicist was also a bongo drummer, a practical joker, and a loving husband.
ANNE FRANK Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl. Anne Frank. 1952 Through the diary she kept while in hiding, thirteen-year-old Anne Frank puts a human face on the Holocaust experience.
JOHN HOCKENBERRY Moving Violations: War Zones, Wheelchairs, and Declarations of Independence. John Hockenberry. 1995.
Journalist Hockenberry is fearless and funny as he relates the personal and professional experiences he encounters from his wheelchair.
STONEWALL JACKSON Stonewall Jackson: The Man, the Soldier, the Legend. James I. Robertson. 1997 Both the genius and the failings of this confederate Civil War general are chronicled in this meticulous account.
JI-LI JIANG Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution. Ji-li Jiang. 1997 A young Chinese girl must make difficult choices when the government urges her to repudiate her ancestors and inform on her own parents.
MARY KARR The Liars' Club: A Memoir. Mary Karr. 1995. Growing up in "a family of liars and drunks" is never easy, and yet, despite alcoholism, rape, and other dark secrets, the author makes childhood in an East Texas refinery town sound as funny as it was painful.
HELEN KELLER The Story of My Life. Helen Keller. 1902. Overcoming deafness and blindness to become an outstanding citizen, Helen Keller embodies courage, passion, and perseverance.
YELENA KHANGA Soul to Soul: A Black Russian American Family, 1865-1992. Yelena Khanga and Susan Jacoby. 1992. A young Russian journalist of African American and Jewish heritage analyzes and compares attitudes on race, religion, and sexism in Russia and America.
JAMAICA KINCAID My Brother. Jamaica Kincaid. 1997. The author returns to the Caribbean island of her birth to help care for her younger brother who is dying of AIDS.
MERIWETHER LEWIS Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West. Stephen E. Ambrose. 1996. Lewis and Clark brave the wilds of North America in this vivid account of exploration and adventure.
JAMES McBRIDE AND RUTH McBRIDE-JORDAN
The Color of Water: a Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother. James McBride. 1996. McBride blends his story with that of his mother, who battled poverty and racism to raise twelve children.
MARK MATHABANE Kaffir Boy: The True Story of a Black Youth's Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa. Mark Mathabane. 1986.
Growing up under the brutalities of apartheid South Africa, Mathabane describes the growing unrest in his country and his eventual escape through his ties to the tennis community.
VED MEHTA Sound-Shadows of the New World. Ved Mehta. 1985.
Leaving his home, family, and culture behind, a blind Indian boy travels to Arkansas to attend a special school where he is challenged by handicap, loneliness, poor preparation, and culture shock.
ANN MOODY Coming of Age in Mississippi. Ann Moody. 1968.
One of the first brave young African American students to participate in a lunch counter sit-in, Moody becomes a heroine of the civil rights movement.
PAT MORA House of Houses. Pat Mora. 1997. With magic and imagination, author Pat Mora weaves the voices of her ancestors into her own personal account of growing up in a Mexican-American family in El Paso, Texas.
LUIS RODRIGUEZ Always Running: La Vida Loca, Gang Days in L.A. Luis Rodriguez. 1993 Rodriguez tells the story of his life in a Los Angeles gang and his later experiences as a Chicano activist.
RICHARD RODRIGUEZ Hunger of Memory: the Education of Richard Rodriguez: an Autobiography. Richard Rodriguez. 1982.
Rodriguez's journey through the educational system leads to his belief that family, culture, and language must be left behind to succeed in mainstream America.
TSAR NICHOLAS ROMANOV AND TSARINA ALEXANDRA
Nicholas and Alexandra. Robert K. Massie 1967 At the brink of revolution, the last Tsar of Russia and his family become victims of their own mismanagement and personal problems.
ELEANOR ROOSEVELT Eleanor Roosevelt: Vol. 1:1884-1933. Blanche Wiesen Cook. 1992. Born into a privileged world, Eleanor Roosevelt became a champion of the underprivileged and a fighter for human rights.
HARRY S. TRUMAN Truman. David G. McCullough. 1992. This notable president earned America's respect by helping to end World War II and reshape the world for postwar peace.
TOBIAS WOLFF This Boy's Life: A Memoir. Tobias Wolff. 1989
In and out of trouble in his youth, this charter member of the "Bad Boys' Club" survives a boyhood that stretches from Florida to the Pacific Northwest.
RICHARD WRIGHT. Black Boy: A Record of Childhood and Youth. Richard Wright. 1945. Wright recalls his pre-World War II youth when racial and personal obstacles seemed insurmountable.
Students will complete the attached Preview and Review for both novels. Worksheets are due the first week of the school year, and students will take the Accelerated Reader (AR) tests for grades that will be counted in the first quarter.
summer_reading_list_for_2015-2016.doc | |
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