2009 Windham County Reads Summer Reading List: 7th/8th grade

Looking for something to read? Windham County Reads has put together a summer reading list of great books for 7th and 8th graders (although those of you in other grades might enjoy them as well). Many of the books can be found here at Brooks. When that's the case, the title has been bolded and a call number has been added to help you locate the book.

Asher, Jay Th1rteen r3asons why: a novel. 2007. When high school student Clay Jenkins receives a box in the mail containing thirteen cassette tapes recorded by his classmate Hannah, who committed suicide, he spends a bewildering and heartbreaking night crisscrossing their town, listening to Hannah's voice recounting the events leading up to her death.

Balliet, Blue The Calder game. 2008. (J BAL; J CD BAL) When seventh-grader Calder Pillay disappears from a remote English village--along with an Alexander Calder sculpture to which he has felt strangely drawn--his friends Petra and Tommy fly from Chicago to help his father find him. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Bartoletti, Susan Campbell. The Boy who dared. 2008. (J BAR; J CD BAR) In October, 1942, seventeen-year-old Helmuth Hubener, imprisoned for distributing anti-Nazi leaflets, recalls his past life and how he came to dedicate himself to bring the truth about Hitler and the war to the German people.

Bradbury, Jennifer. Shift. 2008. When best friends Chris and Win go on a cross country bicycle trek the summer after graduating and only one returns, the FBI wants to know what happened. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Colfer, Eoin. Airman. 2008. (YA COL) In the late nineteenth century, when Conor Broekhart discovers a conspiracy to overthrow the king, he is branded a traitor, imprisoned, and forced to mine for diamonds under brutal conditions while he plans a daring escape from Little Saltee prison by way of a flying machine that he must design, build, and, hardest of all, trust to carry him to safety.

Collins, Suzanne The Hunger Games. 2008. (YA COL) In a future North America, where the rulers of Panem maintain control through an annual televised survival competition pitting young people from each of the twelve districts against one another, sixteen-year-old Katniss's skills are put to the test when she voluntarily takes her younger sister's place. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Dowell, Frances O’Roark Shooting the moon. 2008. (YA DOW) When her brother is sent to fight in Vietnam, twelve-year-old Jamie begins to reconsider the army world that she has grown up in. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Farr, Richard. Emperors of the Ice. 2008. Apsley “Cherry” Cherry-Garrard shares his adventures as the youngest member of Robert Scott’s expedition to Antarctica in 1910, during which he and Edward Wilson try to learn the evolutionary history of emperor penguins, nearly dying in the attempt. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Ferraialo, Jack D. The Big Splash. 2008. Matt Stevens, an average middle schooler with a glib tongue and a knack for solving crimes, uncovers a mystery while working with "the organization," a mafia-like syndicate run by seventh-grader Vincent "Mr. Biggs" Biggio, specializing in forged hall passes, test-copying rings, black market candy selling, and taking out hits with water guns. 2009 Edgar award nominee.

Frost, Helen Diamond Willow. 2008. (J FRO; J CD FRO) In a remote area of Alaska, twelve-year-old Willow helps her father with their sled dogs when she is not at school, wishing she were more popular, all the while unaware that the animals surrounding her carry the spirits of dead ancestors and friends who care for her. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Gaiman, Neil The Graveyard Book. 2008. (J GAI; ) After the murder of his entire family, a toddler wanders into a graveyard where the ghosts and other supernatural residents agree to raise him as one of their own. 2009 Newbery Medal winner. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Gardner, Sally The Red necklace. 2008. (J CD GAR) In the late eighteenth-century, Sido, the twelve-year-old daughter of a self-indulgent marquis, and Yann, a fourteen-year-old Gypsy orphan raised to perform in a magic show, face a common enemy at the start of the French Revolution.

Goodman, Allegra The other side of the island. 2008. Born in the eighth year of Enclosure, ten-year-old Honor lives in a highly regulated colony with her defiant parents, but when they have an illegal second child and are taken away, it is up to Honor and her friend Helix, another "Unpredictable," to uncover a terrible secret about their Island and the Corporation that runs everything. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Haddix, Margaret Peterson Found. 2008. When thirteen-year-olds Jonah and Chip, who are both adopted, learn they were discovered on a plane that appeared out of nowhere, full of babies with no adults on board, they realize that they have uncovered a mystery involving time travel and two opposing forces, each trying to repair the fabric of time. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Hale, Shannon and Dean Hale Rapunzel’s Revenge. 2008. (J 741.5 HAL) Rapunzel is raised in a grand villa surrounded by towering walls. Rapunzel dreams of a different mother than Gothel, the woman she calls Mother. She climbs over the wall and finds out the truth. Her real mother, Kate, is a slave in Gothel's gold mine. In this Old West retelling, Rapunzel uses her hair as a lasso and to take on outlaws--including Gothel. Graphic novel. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Herlong, M.H. The Great Wide Sea. 2008. Still mourning the death of their mother, three brothers go with their father on an extended sailing trip off the Florida Keys and have a harrowing adventure at sea. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Hiaasen, Carl Scat. 2009. (J HIA; J CD HIA) Nick and his friend Marta decide to investigate when a mysterious fire starts near a Florida wildlife preserve and an unpopular teacher goes missing.

Law, Ingrid Savvy. 2008. (J LAW) Recounts the adventures of Mibs Beaumont, whose thirteenth birthday has revealed her "savvy"--a magical power unique to each member of her family--just as her father is injured in a terrible accident. 2009 Newbery Honor Book. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Nicholl, Sally Ways to live forever. 2008. Eleven-year-old Sam McQueen, who has leukemia, writes a book during the last three months of his life, in which he tells about what he would like to accomplish, how he feels, and things that have happened to him.

Patterson, James The final warning. 2008. (YA PAT) While on a mission to Antarctica to save the world from global warming, fourteen-year-old Maximum Ride and the other members of the Flock--a band of genetically modified children who can fly--are pursued by their creator, the Uber-Director, who wants to auction them off to the highest bidder. Fourth in series.

Preller, James Six innings: a game in the life. 2008. Earl Grubb's Pool Supplies plays Northeast Gas & Electric in the Little League championship game, while Sam, who has cancer and is in a wheelchair, has to call the play-by-play instead of participating in the game.

Shusterman, Neal Antsy does time. 2008. Fourteen-year-old Anthony "Antsy" Bonano learns about life, death, and a lot more when he tries to help a friend with a terminal illness feel hopeful about the future. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Spradlin, Michael P. Keeper of the Grail. 2008. (J SPR; J CD SPR) In 1191, fifteen-year-old Tristan, a youth of unknown origin raised in an English abbey, becomes a Templar Knight's squire during the Third Crusade and soon finds himself on a mission to bring the Holy Grail to safety. DCF nominee 2009-2010.

Vail, Rachel Lucky. 2008. (YA VAL) As Phoebe and her clique of privileged girlfriends get ready to graduate from eighth grade, a financial scandal threatens her family's security--as well as Phoebe's social status--but ultimately it teaches her the real meaning of friendship.