Summer Reading 2017 Expectations: Each rising 6th, 7th, and 8th grader at Starr-Iva Middle School is expected to read at least one book from this list over summer break. When you return to SIMS in August you will need to take an AR test on the book you read within the first two weeks of school. All students who score at least an 80 on the test will be rewarded! All of these books have been nominated to receive a South Carolina Junior Book Award so they re all great summer reads! Read through the summaries to help you select the perfect book. Beside the title and author you ll find some more helpful information: ~ IL stands for Interest Level. This is based on the book s content, theme, characterization, and plot. MG stands for Middle Grades (4-8) MG+ stands for Upper Middle Grades (6 and up) UG stands for Upper Grades (9-12) ~ BL stands for Book Level and relates to the difficulty of the text. For example, a book level of 4.5 means the text could likely be read independently by a fourth grader during the fifth month of school. ~ AR Pts. stands for Accelerated Reader Points. Each student will be assigned an appropriate AR goal after the first round of standardized testing. Adrift by Paul Griffin IL: UG; BL: 4.1; AR Pts.: 7 Matt and John are working-class guys trying to earn some money, and Driana, JoJo, and Stef live a much different life of privilege and wealth. Worlds collide when the five teens are lost at sea with no one to count on but themselves. This is a great summer read as long as you stay on dry land. Beneath by Roland Smith IL: MG+; BL: 4.3; AR Pts.: 6 After receiving a cryptic message from his older brother, Pat sets out on a strange and dangerous journey to the mysterious Community living beneath the streets of New York. Big Top Burning: The True Story of an Arsonist, a Missing Girl, and the Greatest Show in Earth by Laura A. Woollett IL: MG; BL: 7.1; AR Pts.: 3 This book draws upon primary source documents and survivor interviews to recount the story of one of the worst disasters in American history, the 1944 Hartford circus fire, which claimed the lives of over 100 people.
Fort by Cynthia DeFelica IL: MG; BL: 4.4; AR Pts.: 5 When older boys trespass in the fort where Wyatt and Augie have been enjoying a wonderful summer, they team up with another bullied kid to exact revenge against the older boys, with unexpected consequences. Ghostlight by Sonia Gensler IL: MG; BL: 4.6; AR Pts.: 9 Disappointed when her brother pursues other interests during their annual summer visit to their grandmother's farm, Avery befriends a famous man's son, who announces his intentions to film a ghost story at a scary nearby mansion. House Arrest by K.A. Holt IL: MG+; BL:4.0 ; AR Pts.: 4 Young Timothy is sentenced to house arrest after impulsively stealing a wallet, and he is forced to keep a journal into which he pours all his thoughts, fears, and frustrations. I Am Princess X by Cherie Priest IL: MG+; BL: 5.3; AR Pts.: 9 Years after writing stories about a superheroine character she created with a best friend who died in a tragic car accident, sixteen-year-old May is shocked to see stickers, patches, and graffiti images of the superheroine appearing all over town. I Will Always Write Back: How One Letter Changed Two Lives by Caitlin Alifirenka and Martin Ganda; IL: MG; BL: 5.6; AR Pts.: 13 In this dual memoir, Caitlin Alifirenka and Martin Ganda recount how they became best friends and better people through letters.
Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman IL: MG; BL: 5.5; AR Pts.: 11 Just after twelve-year-old Emily and her family move to San Francisco, she teams up with new friend James to follow clues in an odd book they find, hoping to figure out its secrets before the men who attacked Emily's hero, publisher Garrison Griswold, solve the mystery or come after the friends. Chasing Secrets by Gennifer Choldenko IL: MG; BL: 3.7; AR Pts.: 7 Thirteen-year-old Lizzie and her secret friend, Noah, who is hiding in her house, plan to rescue Noah's father from the quarantined Chinatown and save everyone they love from contracting the plague that is spreading in 1900 San Francisco. The Chosen Prince by Diane Stanley IL: MG; BL: 5.3; AR Pts.: 11 Prince Alexos, the long-awaited champion of the goddess Athene, follows the course of his destiny through war and loss and a deadly confrontation with his enemy to its end: a shipwreck on a magical, fog-shrouded island. Code of Honor by Alan Gratz IL: UG; BL: 4.7; AR Pts.: 10 When Iranian American Kamran Smith learns that his big brother, Darius, has been labelled a terrorist, he sets out to piece together the codes and clues that will save his brother's life and his country from a deadly terrorist attack. Fast Break by Mike Lupica IL: MG; BL: 5.2; AR Pts.: 9 Since his mother's death, twelve-year-old Jayson has focused on basketball and surviving. When he is found out and placed with an affluent foster family, he must learn to accept many changes, including facing his former teammates in a championship game.
Mark of the Thief by Jennifer A. Nielsen IL: MG; BL:5.2 ; AR Pts.: 12 Nic, a slave in the mines of Rome, is forced to enter a sealed cave filled with Julius Caesar's treasures. What he finds will change his destiny and the history of the Empire. Book #1 Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson IL: MG; BL: 3.2; AR Pts.:2 Astrid signs up for roller derby camp, but her best friend Nicole chooses dance. While making new friends and struggling with a new sport, Astrid fears she is losing Nicole. The Seventh Most Important Thing by Shelley Pearsall IL:MG ;BL: 5.1;AR Pts.:8 In 1963, thirteen-year-old Arthur is sentenced to community service helping the neighborhood Junk Man after Arthur throws a brick at the old man's head in a moment of rage, but the junk he collects might be more important than he suspects. Terror at Bottle Creek by Watt Key IL:MG; BL:4.4; AR Pts.: 6 Thirteen-year-old Cort's father, a local expert on hunting and swamp lore in lower Alabama, has been teaching his son everything he knows. When a deadly Gulf Coast hurricane makes landfall, Cort must unexpectedly put all his skills to the test. Walk on Earth a Stranger by Rae Carson IL:MG; BL:4.8; AR Pts.: 16 Lee Westfall, who possesses a supernatural ability to sense the presence of gold, disguises herself as a boy and seeks safety and romance in California. Book #1 The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley IL:MG; BL:4.1; AR Pts.:9 A young disabled girl and her brother are evacuated from London to the English countryside during World War II, where they find life to be much sweeter away from their abusive mother. The Worst Class Trip Ever by Dave Barry IL: MG; BL:4.8; AR Pts.:6 Attending a class trip in Washington, D.C., Wyatt and his friends encounter a group of mysterious men and find themselves dodging their long-suffering teachers to stop what may be a plot against the president. Book #1
Have a great summer, and happy reading!