MOUNTAIN VIEW MIDDLE SCHOOL SUGGESTED SUMMER READING LIST FOR GRADE 7 This list is a good place to start your summer reading, but it is just a beginning. If you find an author you like or a type of story you enjoy, you can read and explore others like it.

Knowing how to choose a good book is part of being a good reader. Have fun choosing and reading books this summer. I look forward to discussing what you read in September! 

(For more details or to find other books, check out reviews on www.scholastic.com or www.amazon.com) Realistic Fiction LIGHT VIOLET – Love, Stargirl - Jerry Spinelli Love, Stargirl picks up a year after Stargirl ends and reveals the new life of the beloved character who moved away so suddenly at the end of Stargirl. The novel takes the form of "the world's longest letter," in diary form, going from date to date through a little more than a year's time. In her writing, Stargirl mixes memories of her bittersweet time in Mica, Arizona, with involvements with new people in her life. In Love, Stargirl, we hear the voice of Stargirl herself as she reflects on time, life, Leo, and — of course — love.

BLACK - The Outsiders – S.E. Hinton A landmark work of American fiction first published in 1967, S. E. Hinton's novel was an immediate phenomenon. Today, The Outsiders continues to resonate with its powerful portrait of the bonds and boundaries of friendship. In Ponyboy's world there are two types of people. There are the Socs, the rich society kids who get away with anything. Then there are the greasers, like Ponyboy, who aren't so lucky. Ponyboy has a few things he can count on: his older brothers, his friends, and trouble with the Socs, whose idea of a good time is beating up greasers. At least he knows what to expect — until the night things go too far.

SPRING GREEN - All Alone in the Universe - Lynne Rae Perkins "Before last summer Maureen and I were best friends....At least I think we were. I don't know what happened exactly. As some people who get hit by trucks sometimes say,'I didn't see anything coming.'" When her best friend since the third grade starts acting as though Debbie doesn't exist, Debbie finds out the hard way that life can be a lonesome place. But in the end the heroine of this wryly funny coming-of-age story--a girl who lives in a house covered with stuff that is supposed to look like bricks but is just a fake brick pattern--discovers that even the hourly tragedies of junior high school can have silver linings, just as a house covered with Insul-Brick can protect a real home. This first novel shines--fun, engrossing, bittersweet, and wonderfully unpredictable.

BLACK - My Sister's Keeper - Jodi Picoult Thirteen-year-old Anna was born after an embryonic selection process that ensured she would be an ideal matching donor for her sister Kate, who suffers from leukemia. After many years of bone marrow transplants and the like, Anna decides to sue her parents to prevent a kidney donation that could save Kate's life.

NAVY BLUE - Nothing but the Truth: A Documentary Novel - Avi In this thought-provoking examination of freedom, patriotism, and respect, ninth-grader Philip Malloy is kept from joining the track team by his failing grades in English class. Convinced that the teacher just doesn't like him, Philip concocts a plan to get transferred out of her class. Breaking the school's policy of silence during the national anthem, he hums along, and ends up in a crisis at the center of the nation's attention.

TEAL - Love That Dog: A Novel - Sharon Creech Jack hates poetry. Only girls write it and every time he tries to, his brain feels empty. But his teacher, Ms. Stretchberry, won't stop giving her class poetry assignments — and Jack can't avoid them. But then something amazing happens. The more he writes, the more he learns he does have something to say. With a fresh and deceptively simple style, acclaimed author Sharon Creech tells a story with enormous heart. Written as a series of free-verse poems from Jack's point of view, Love That Dog shows how one boy finds his own voice with the help of a teacher, a writer, a pencil, some yellow paper, and of course, a dog.

NAVY BLUE - Walk Two Moons – Sharon Creech An engaging story of love and loss, told with humor and suspense. Thirteen-year-old Salamanca Tree Hiddle's mother has disappeared. While tracing her steps on a car trip from Ohio to Idaho with her grandparents, Salamanca tells a story to pass the time about a friend named Phoebe Winterbottom whose mother vanished and who received secret messages after her disappearance. One of them read, "Don't judge a man until you have walked two moons in his moccasins." Despite her father's warning that she is "fishing in the air," Salamanca hopes to bring her home. By drawing strength from her Native American ancestry, she is able to face the truth about her mother. Walk Two Moons won the 1995 Newbery Medal.

LIGHT VIOLET – Absolutely Normal Chaos- Sharon Creech Mary Lou Finney grudgingly begins writing a journal as a summer project for school. Then her cousin Carl Ray comes to stay, and what started out as a dull assignment quickly becomes an amazing record of first love and family intrigue. Mary Lou's hilarious observations on love, death, and the confusing mechanics of holding hands will delight fans of Walk Two Moons.

NAVY BLUE - Tangerine – Edward Bloor Paul Fisher's older brother Erik is a high school football star, but to Paul he's no hero. Paul's own game is soccer, which he plays even though he has to wear thick glasses because of a mysterious eye injury. When the Fishers move to Tangerine, Florida, Paul tries to make sense of things. Like why people live in a place where underground fires burn for years, a sinkhole swallows his school, and lightning strikes the same practice field every day. Why he fits into the toughest group around, which just happens to be his new soccer team. And most of all, why no one but he can see the terrifying truth about Erik.

BRIGHT BLUE - Slam – Walter Dean Myers A love of basketball isn't necessary to enjoy this gritty, feelingly told tale, but it would certainly help. Myers uses contemporary urban black locutions to relay his narrator's view of the mean streets of Harlem, as well as describe some heart-thumping hoop action in a novel that, like most good sports stories, is about more than just sports. "I can hoop," says Slam. "Case closed.... You can take my game to the bank and wait around for interest.” Only when he is playing basketball does Slam know what moves to make and how to relate to the people around him. The rest of the time he stumbles, alienating his mother, girlfriend, teachers, even his coach and teammates. But, as the plain-speaking assistant coach tells him, "Everybody is in the game off the court," and Slam finally realizes that it's his attitude, not other people, that holds him back. Enduring truths, winningly presented. Coretta Scott King Honor Book.

NAVY BLUE - The View from Saturday - E.L. Konigsburg Four students, with their own individual stories, develop a special bond and attract the attention of their teacher, a paraplegic, who chooses them to represent their sixth-grade class in the Academic Bowl competition.

LIGHT VIOLET – Pictures of Hollis Woods - Patricia Reilly Giff Hollis Woods was an infant when she was abandoned and for 12 years she has been transferred from one foster home to another. To the social agency, she is a "mountain of trouble" because she skips school and runs away, even from the Regans, a family willing to give her a real home. When she is placed with Josie, an elderly artist who is becoming very forgetful, Hollis begins to feel needed and doesn't ever want to leave this eccentric old woman who knows a lot about friendship and love.

RED - Shiloh (Shiloh, Book #1)- Phyllis Reynolds Naylor When 11-year-old Marty Preston finds a young beagle up in the hills behind his home near Friendly, West Virginia, he is convinced that the poor pup is in trouble. Certain that the dog is being abused by his owner, Judd Travers, Marty names him "Shiloh" and immediately feels that he will do anything to save the dog from further harm. When the dog runs away from Judd to Marty's house, Marty is faced with a number of ethical dilemmas: Should he tell his parents? Should he return the dog to the abusive Judd? Should he steal food to feed the mistreated pup?

NAVY BLUE - The Pigman (Pigman, Book #1)- Paul Zindel Zindel's groundbreaking, bestselling tour de force is the unforgettable tale of two disillusioned high school students who have their faith in humanity restored by lonely, eccentric Mr. Pignati, whom they dub the Pigman. Meet Mr. Pignati, a lonely old man with a beer belly and an awful secret. He's the Pigman, and he's got a great big twinkling smile. When John and Lorraine, two high school sophomores, meet Mr. Pignati, they learn his whole sad, zany story.

RED - Rules – Cynthia Lord Twelve-year-old Catherine has conflicting feelings about her younger brother, David, who is autistic. While she loves him, she is also embarrassed by his behavior and feels neglected by their parents. In an effort to keep life on an even keel, Catherine creates rules for him (It's okay to hug Mom but not the clerk at the video store). Each chapter title is also a rule. Then Catherine meets and befriends Jason, a nonverbal paraplegic who uses a book of pictures to communicate, she begins to understand that normal is difficult, and perhaps unnecessary, to define. Rules of behavior are less important than acceptance of others.

RED - Because of Winn-Dixie - Kate DiCamillo Ten-year-old India Opal Buloni's mother walked out on her seven years ago, and she's been asking about her ever since — so that she won't forget her mom. But when she moves to Naomi, Florida, and befriends a lively stray dog, the canine helps her meet some unusual characters who teach her about love, life, and forgiveness.

BRIGHT BLUE - Freak the Mighty - Rodman Philbrick A brilliant, emotionally charged novel about two boys. One is a slow learner, too large for his age, and the other is a tiny, disabled genius. The two pair up to create one formidable human force known as "Freak the Mighty". MAX. FREAK. BEST FRIENDS. FOREVER. I never had a brain until Freak came along. . . That's what Max thought. All his life he'd been called stupid. Dumb. Slow. It didn't help that his body seemed to be growing faster than his mind. It didn't help that people were afraid of him. So Max learned how to be alone. At least until Freak came along. Freak was weird, too. He had a little body — and a really big brain. Together Max and Freak were unstoppable. Together, they were Freak the Mighty.

SPRING GREEN - Smile or Drama- Raina Telgemeier Smile -- Raina just wants to be a normal sixth grader. But one night after Girl Scouts she trips and falls, severely injuring her two front teeth, and what follows is a long and frustrating journey with on-again, off-again braces, surgery, embarrassing headgear, and even a retainer with fake teeth attached. And on top of all that, there's still more to deal with: a major earthquake, boy confusion, and friends who turn out to be not so friendly. This coming-of-age true story is sure to resonate with anyone who has ever been in middle school, and especially those who have ever had a bit of their own dental dram.

Drama--2013 Stonewall Honor BookCallie loves theater. And while she would totally try out for her middle school's production of "Moon over Mississippi," she's a terrible singer. Instead she's the set designer for the stage crew, and this year she's determined to create a set worthy of Broadway on a middle-school budget. But how can she, when she doesn't know much about carpentry, ticket sales are down, and the crew members are having trouble working together? Not to mention the onstage and offstage drama that occurs once the actors are chosen, and when two cute brothers enter the picture, things get even crazier!

PEACHY - Kira Kira – Cynthia Kadohata Katie Takeshima knows her sister Lynn taught her to say Kira-Kira, the Japanese word for glittering or shining. The word is a sharp contrast to the hardships Katie's parents face working in the poultry industry in 1950's Georgia and coping with Lynn's terminal illness. What does shine in Cynthia Kadohata's Newbery-winning novel are the loving relationships between parents, sisters, and younger brother Sam, and the support the Takeshimas find in their small Japanese- American community. Katie recalls difficult times such as the family's move from Iowa and the traumatic day when Sam got caught in an animal trap. She also remembers with great affection Lynn's exceptional abilities and the kooky kindness of her paternal uncle. Katie finds many of these memories recorded in Lynn's diary, and she also recognizes that one of Lynn's legacies is her own ability to see the kira-kira all around her.

BRIGHT BLUE - Hoot or Flush - Carl Hiassen -- Hoot - Roy Eberhardt is the new kid--again. This time around it's Trace Middle School in humid Coconut Grove, Florida. But it's still the same old routine: table by himself at lunch, no real friends, and thick-headed bullies like Dana Matherson pushing him around. But if it wasn't for Dana Matherson mashing his face against the school bus window that one day, he might never have seen the tow-headed running boy. And if he had never seen the running boy, he might never have met tall, tough, bully-beating Beatrice. And if he had never met Beatrice, he might never have discovered the burrowing owls living in the lot on the corner of East Oriole Avenue. And if he had never discovered the owls, he probably would have missed out on the adventure of a lifetime. Apparently, bullies do serve a greater purpose in the scope of the universe. Because if it wasn't for Dana Matherson...

-- Flush -- You know it's going to be a rough summer when you spend Father's Day visiting your dad in the local prison. Noah's dad is sure that the owner of the Coral Queen casino boat is flushing raw sewage into the harbor — which has made taking a dip at the local beach like swimming in a toilet. He can't prove it though, and so he decides that sinking the boat will make an effective statement. Right. The boat is pumped out and back in business within days and Noah's dad is stuck in the slammer. Now Noah is determined to succeed where his dad failed.

Travel Team - PEACHY or Heat LIGHT VIOLET – Mike Lupica --Travel Team -- Twelve-year-old Danny Walker may be the smallest kid on the basketball court--but don't tell him that. Because no one plays with more heart or court sense. But none of that matters when he is cut from his local travel team, the very same team his father led to national prominence as a boy. Danny's father, still smarting from his own troubles, knows Danny isn't the only kid who was cut for the wrong reason, and together, this washed-up former player and a bunch of never-say-die kids prove that the heart simply cannot be measured. Travel Team is an inspirational tale in the tradition of The Bad News Bears and Hoosiers. It will leave readers of all ages cheering.

-- Heat -- Michael Arroyo has a pitching arm that throws serious heat. But his firepower is nothing compared to the heat Michael faces in his day-to-day life. Newly orphaned after his father led the family's escape from Cuba, Michael's only family is his seventeen-year-old brother Carlos. If Social Services hears of their situation, they will be separated in the foster-care system or worse, sent back to Cuba. Together, the boys carry on alone, dodging bills and anyone who asks too many questions. But then someone wonders how a twelve-year-old boy could possibly throw with as much power as Michael Arroyo throws. With no way to prove his age, no birth certificate, and no parent to fight for his cause, Michaels secret world is blown wide open, and he discovers that family can come from the most unexpected sources. Fantasy/Science Fiction

BLACK – Divergent/Insurgent- Veronica Roth In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

PEACHY - Over Sea, Under Stone (The Dark Is Rising Series, Book #1) - Susan Cooper Barney, Simon and Jane find themselves beset by deadly dangers as they embark on a great quest. Having found a crumbling parchment map, they begin their search for ancient treasure linked to King Arthur. More precious than life itself, the treasure, found by the right people, would help keep at bay the ancient forces of evil that were once again powerful in the world. They turn for help to their Great-Uncle Merry, who draws on his vast knowledge of ancient lore to protect them.

BLACK –The Unwanteds - Lisa McMann Every year in Quill, thirteen-year-olds are sorted into categories: The strong, intelligent Wanteds go to university, and the artistic Unwanteds are sent to their deaths. Thirteen-year-old Alex tries his hardest to be stoic when his fate is announced as Unwanted, even while leaving behind his twin, Aaron, a Wanted.Upon arrival at the destination where he expected to be eliminated, however, Alex discovers a stunning secret: Behind the mirage of the "death farm" there is instead a place called Artime. In Artime, each child is taught to cultivate their creative abilities and learn how to use them magically, weaving spells through paintbrushes and musical instruments. But it's a rare, unique occurrence for twins to be separated between Wanted and Unwanted, and as Alex and Aaron's bond stretches across their separation, a threat arises for the survival of Artime that will pit brother against brother in an ultimate, magical battle.

LIGHT VIOLET - The Thief Lord – Cornelia Funke Prosper and Bo are orphans on the run from their cruel aunt and uncle. The brothers decide to hide out in Venice, where they meet a mysterious 13-year-old boy who calls himself the "Thief Lord." Brilliant and charismatic, the Thief Lord leads a ring of street children who dabble in petty crimes. Prosper and Bo delight in being part of this colorful new family. But the Thief Lord has secrets of his own. And soon the boys are thrust into circumstances that will lead them and readers to a fantastic, spellbinding conclusion.

PEACHY - The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride, Book #1) -James Patterson Fourteen-year-old Maximum Ride knows what it's like to soar above the world. She and all the members of the "Flock" — Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gasman and Angel — are just like ordinary kids except they have wings and can fly. It may seem like a dream come true to some, but their lives can morph into a living nightmare at any time. When Angel, the youngest member, is kidnapped and taken back to the "School" where she and the others were genetically engineered by sinister scientists, the Flock journeys to Death Valley, CA, to save her. They soon find themselves in yet another nightmare — this one involving fighting off the half-human, half-wolf "Erasers". Along the way Max discovers that her purpose is save the world — but can she?

BRIGHT BLUE - Aquamarine - Alice Hoffman Master storyteller Alice Hoffman has written a tale of enchantment: a luminous lesson in how to say goodbye and how to hold on to those we love best of all. Hailey and Claire are spending their last summer together when they discover something at the bottom of the murky pool at the Capri Beach Club. There in the depths is a mysterious and beautiful creature with a sharp tongue and a broken heart: a mermaid named Aquamarine who has left her six sisters to search for love on land. Now, as this mythological yet very real being starts to fade in the burning August sun, a rescue is begun.

BRIGHT BLUE – Coraline - Neil Gaiman In Coraline's family's new flat there's a locked door. On the other side is a brick wall — until Coraline unlocks the door... and finds a passage to another flat in another house just like her own. Only different.The food is better there. Books have pictures that writhe and crawl and shimmer. And there's another mother and father there who want Coraline to be their little girl. They want to "change" her and keep her with them... "Forever.""Coraline" is an extraordinary fairy tale/nightmare from the uniquely skewed imagination of #1" New York Times" bestselling author Neil Gaiman.

TEAL - The Bar Code Tattoo - Suzanne Weyn This teen thriller rides the cutting edge in a sci-fi fantasy about conformity, identity and freedom. The setting is the near future, and anyone coming of age seventeen receives a bar code tattoo. It's a rite of passage and it's the be-all and end- all of identity. The bar code tattoo. Everybody's getting it. It will make your life easier, they say. It will hook you in. It will become your identity. But what if you say no? What if you don't want to become a code? For Kayla, this one choice changes everything. She becomes an outcast in her high school. Dangerous things happen to her family. There's no option but to run...for her life.

BLACK - Elsewhere – Gabrielle Zevin Welcome to Elsewhere. It is warm, with a breeze, and the beaches are marvelous. It’s quiet and peaceful. You can’t get sick or any older. Curious to see new paintings by Picasso? Swing by one of Elsewhere’s museums. Need to talk to someone about your problems? Stop by Marilyn Monroe’s psychiatric practice. Elsewhere is where fifteen-year-old Liz Hall ends up, after she has died. It is a place so like Earth, yet completely different. Here Liz will age backward from the day of her death until she becomes a baby again and returns to Earth. But Liz wants to turn sixteen, not fourteen again. She wants to get her driver’s license. She wants to graduate from high school and go to college. And now that she’s dead, Liz is being forced to live a life she doesn’t want with a grandmother she has only just met. And it is not going well. This moving, often funny book about grief, death, and loss will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned. Elsewhere is a 2006 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

SPRING GREEN - Into the Wild ( Warriors , Book #1) - Erin W. Hunter For generations, four Clans of wild cats have shared the forest according to the laws laid down by the powerful ancestors. But the warrior code is threatened, and the ThunderClan cats are in grave danger. The sinister ShadowClan grows stronger every day. Noble warriors are dying — and some deaths are more mysterious than others. In the midst of this turmoil appears an ordinary housecat named Rusty... Who may yet turn out to be the bravest warrior of them all.

BLACK- The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien A great modern classic and the prelude to The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit was written for J.R.R. Tolkien's own children, and met with instant critical acclaim when first published in the 1930s. Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely traveling any farther than his pantry or cellar. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an adventure. They have launched a plot to raid the treasure hoard guarded by Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon. Bilbo reluctantly joins their quest, unaware that on his journey to the Lonely Mountain he will encounter both a magic ring and a frightening creature known as Gollum.

YELLOW – Uglies (series)- Scott Westerfeld Everybody gets to be supermodel gorgeous. What could be wrong with that? Tally Youngblood is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. Not for her driver's license — for turning pretty. In Tally's world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there. Anticipating this happy transformation, Tally meets Shay, another female ugly, who shares her enjoyment of hoverboarding and risky pranks. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world — and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. The choice Tally makes changes her world forever.

SPRING GREEN - The Lightening Thief (series) – Rick Riordan Classic Greek mythology is mixed with modern adventure in this brand-new, action-packed series. Twelve-year-old Percy is always in trouble, and it doesn't help that he's started seeing monsters everywhere! Things become clearer when Percy discovers he is the son of Poseidon, God of the Sea. Percy is sent to a summer camp on Long Island, but trouble starts all over again when Percy is sent on a quest to prevent war on Mount Olympus.

YELLOW - Prince of Mist- Carlos Ruiz Zafon It's war time, and the Carver family decides to leave the capital where they live and move to a small coastal village where they've recently bought a home. But from the minute they cross the threshold, strange things begin to happen. In that mysterious house still lurks the spirit of Jacob, the previous owners' son. With the help of their new friend Roland, Max and Alicia Carver begin to explore the strange circumstances of that death and discover the existence of a mysterious being called the Prince of Mist--a diabolical character who has returned from the shadows to collect on a debt from the past. Soon the three friends find themselves caught up in an adventure of sunken ships and an enchanted stone garden-- an adventure that will change their lives forever. SPRING GREEN - Half Magic (Edward Eager's Tales of Magic, Book #1) - Edward Eager Harry Potter fans, take note: magic is alive and well in this exciting adventure, which has been a favorite of readers for more than 50 years. Ordinary kids Jane, Katharine, Mark, and Martha love reading fantastic stories, but after finishing a long-awaited E. Nesbit book that's just come in at the library, they can't help but sigh. "Why don't things like that ever happen to us?" asks Martha. Soon enough, something doe

Historical Fiction

LIGHT VIOLET - Glory Be - Augusta Scattergood A Mississippi town in 1964 gets riled when tempers flare at the segregated public pool.As much as Gloriana June Hemphill, or Glory as everyone knows her, wants to turn twelve, there are times when Glory wishes she could turn back the clock a year. Jesslyn, her sister and former confidante, no longer has the time of day for her now that she’ll be entering high school. Then there’s her best friend, Frankie. Things have always been so easy with Frankie, and now suddenly they aren’t. Maybe it’s the new girl from the North that’s got everyone out of sorts. Or maybe it’s the debate about whether or not the town should keep the segregated public pool open. Augusta Scattergood has drawn on real-life events to create a memorable novel about family, friendship, and choices that aren’t always easy.

NAVY BLUE - Bud, Not Buddy - Christopher Paul Curtis It's 1936, in Flint, Michigan. Ten-year-old Bud may be a motherless boy on the run, but he's on a mission. His momma never told him who his father was, but she left a clue: posters of Herman E. Calloway and his famous band, the Dusky Devastators of the Depression! Bud's got an idea that those posters will lead to his father. Once he decides to hit the road and find this mystery man, nothing can stop him. Bud, Not Buddy is full of laugh-out-loud humor and wonderful characters, hitting the high notes of jazz and sounding the deeper tones of the Great Depression.

LIGHT VIOLET The Breadwinner or Parvana’s Journey – Deborah Ellis -- The Breadwinner-- Since the Taliban took over Afghanistan, 11-year-old Parvana has rarely been outdoors. Barred from attending school, shopping at the market, or even playing in the streets of Kabul, the heroine of Deborah Ellis's engrossing children's novel The Breadwinner is trapped inside her family's one-room home. That is, until the Taliban hauls away her father and Parvana realizes that it's up to her to become the "breadwinner" and disguise herself as a boy to support her mother, two sisters, and baby brother. Set in the early years of the Taliban regime, this topical novel for middle readers explores the harsh realities of life for girls and women in modern-day Afghanistan. It is based on the true- life stories of women in Afghan refugee camps. In the wily Parvana, Ellis creates a character to whom North American children will have no difficulty relating.

--Parvana’s Journey--Sequel to The Breadwinner, Parvana's Journey by Deborah Ellis follows the eponymous 12-year-old girl who, disguised as a boy, sets off from Kabul in search of her missing mother and siblings in Taliban-era Afghanistan. When war breaks out, she bands together with other displaced children.

YELLOW - When Zachary Beaver Came to Town – Kimberly Willis Holt Stuck in Antler, Texas, where "nothing ever happens," life to Toby Wilson is dull and going nowhere. Besides that, his mother leaves home to become a country music singer; his best friend's brother is sent to fight in Vietnam, and the girl of his dreams loves someone else. But when the fattest boy in the world parks his trailer in the Dairy Maid parking lot, Toby discovers he has a lot to learn about his town and about life. The summer of 1971 holds a series of discoveries that change Toby's life forever and getting to know Zachary leads the way.

BRIGHT BLUE - Under the Blood Red Sun – Graham Salisbury December 7, 1941 -- thirteen-year-old Tomikazu Nakaji and his best friend Billy Davis are playing in a field near their homes in Hawaii when the Japanese launch a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. As Tomi looks up at the sky and recognizes the Blood-Red Sun emblem on the amber fighter planes, he knows that his life has changed forever.

BLACK - The Great Escape – Paul Brickhill The Great Escape is a true story of one of the greatest mass POW escapes of World War II. They were American and British air force officers in a German prison camp. With only their bare hands and the crudest of homemade tools, they sank shafts, forged passports, faked weapons, and tailored German uniforms and civilian clothes. They developed a fantastic security system to protect themselves from German surveillance. It was a split-second operation as delicate and as deadly as a time bomb. It demanded the concentrated devotion and vigilance of more than six hundred men—every one of them, every minute, every hour, every day and night for more than a year

TEAL - Al Capone Does My Shirts - Gennifer Choldenko Moose Flannagan moves with his family to Alcatraz so his dad can work as a prison guard and his sister, Natalie, can attend a special school. But Natalie has autism, and when she's denied admittance to the school, the stark setting of Alcatraz begins to unravel the tenuous coping mechanisms Moose's family has used for dealing with her disorder. When Moose meets Piper, the cute daughter of the Warden, he knows right off she's trouble. But she's also strangely irresistible. All Moose wants to do is protect Natalie, live up to his parents' expectations, and stay out of trouble. But on Alcatraz, trouble is never very far away. Set in 1935, when guards actually lived on Alcatraz Island with their families, Choldenko's second novel brings humor to the complexities of family dynamics and illuminates the real struggle of a kid trying to free himself from the "good boy" stance he's taken his whole life.

BLACK - The Secret Life Of Bees – Sue Monk Kidd Fourteen-year-old Lily lost her mother in a gun accident ten years ago and has lived a decade of loneliness and abuse at the hands of her father. Set in the turbulent 1960s, The Secret Life of Bees gives the reader a look at what it was like to be African American in the southern United States as Lily and her nanny run away from home. In her debut novel, Sue Monk Kidd follows Lily as she is taken in by three black, bee-keeping sisters in South Carolina. She explores Lily's search for the truth about her mother; her courage to tear down racial barriers; and her joy as she claims her place within a community of women. As she enters their mesmerizing secret world of bees and honey, she discovers a place where she can find the single thing her heart longs for most.

BRIGHT BLUE - Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry - Mildred D. Taylor The land is all-important to the Logan family. But it takes awhile for Cassie and her three brothers to understand just how lucky they are to have it. They must learn the hard way that having a place they can call their own in rural Mississippi permits the Logans the luxuries of pride and courage that their poor black sharecropper neighbor can't afford.Having land gives the Logan children an emotional foundation as they begin to notice the difference between how white children and black children are treated in the Jim Crow South of the Great Depression. Like how textbooks are only issued to black children — labeled "nigra" in the book's inside cover — after they've been thoroughly used by white children. And it takes injustices such as these, and a turbulent year of intense racial prejudice, of night riders and burnings, to show Cassie just how important owning their own land is.Winner of the 1977 Newbery Medal and nominated for the National Book Award. Mystery BLACK - The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson investigate a scandal in Bohemia involving Irene Adler, chalk drawings of dancing men, the identity of a crooked man, a missing naval treaty, a solitary cyclist's mysterious follower, the dangers of a speckled band, and a blue carbuncle found in the crop of a goose.

BRIGHT BLUE - The Mysterious Benedict Society- by Trenton Lee Stewart In this NYT Bestseller, dozens of children enroll to take a series of mysterious, mind-bending tests. But in the end, only four very special children will succeed. Their challenge: to go on a secret mission that only the most intelligent and resourceful children could complete. With their newfound friendship at stake, will they be able to pass the most important tests of all?

BLACK - And Then There Were None – Agatha Christie Considered the best mystery novel ever written by many readers, And Then There Were None is the story of 10 strangers, each lured to Indian Island by a mysterious host. Once his guests have arrived, the host accuses each person of murder. Unable to leave the island, the guests begin to share their darkest secrets--until they begin to die.

YELLOW - Stormbreaker (Alex Rider Adventure, Book #1) - Anthony Horowitz "The novel provides bang after bang as Alex experiences and survives unbelievably dangerous episodes and eventually crashes through the roof of the Science Museum to save the day. Alex is a strong, smart hero. If readers consider luck the ruling factor in his universe, they will love this James Bond-style adventure. With short cliff-hanger chapters and its breathless pace, it is an excellent choice for reluctant readers." — School Library Journal

LIGHT VIOLET - The Westing Game – Ellen Raskin When sixteen people are called together for the reading of wealthy Sam Westing's will, they are surprised to learn that the will is actually a contest in which they are all to participate. Working with partners, the potential heirs take their clues to try to find the elusive answer to the Westing game and thus take their shares of the two-hundred-million-dollar prize.A Newbery Medal winner.

TEAL - Last Shot: A Final Four Mystery - John Feinstein Steven Thomas is one of two lucky winners of the U.S. Basketball Writer’ s Association’ s contest for aspiring journalists. His prize? A trip to New Orleans and a coveted press pass for the Final Four. It’ s a basketball junkie’ s dream come true! But the games going on behind the scenes between the coaches, the players, the media, the money-men, and the fans turn out to be even more fiercely competitive than those on the court. Steven and his fellow winner, Susan Carol Anderson, are nosing around the Superdome and overhear what sounds like a threat to throw the championship game. Now they have just 48 hours to figure out who is blackmailing one of MSU’ s star players . . . and why. LIGHT VIOLET - Silent to the Bone - E. L. Konigsburg When Branwell Zamborska calls 911 to say that his baby half-sister, Nikki, has slipped into a coma, he suddenly cannot speak. Luckily, Vivian, the au pair from England, takes over and the emergency team rushes to help her. As Nikki is whisked away to the hospital, Vivian reveals the awful truth that Branwell purposefully shook and dropped his baby sister. Branwell is sent to the Clarion County Juvenile Behavior center where he remains silent, unwilling or unable to defend himself against Vivian's accusations. Unable to believe that Branwell would abuse his own sister, Connor, Branwell's best friend, starts his own investigation to get to the truth of what really happened that day. Branwell has always been an oddball, but would he purposefully have hurt his baby sister? Connor finds a way to communicate with his best friend and begins to unwind the mystery of Branwell's silence. E.L. Konigsburg weaves an absorbing tale of friendship and trust that will keep you guessing until the end.

RED - The Abduction (Kidnapped, Book #1) - Gordon Korman It's every brother's worst fear: As Aiden and his sister Meg are walking home from school one day, a van pulls over and Meg is kidnapped. There's no way for Aiden to stop it from happening. He's the only witness to his sister's disappearance. Why has Meg been kidnapped? Is it for ransom? As a vendetta against Meg and Aiden's parents? Or is there an even bigger conspiracy at work? While Meg fends off her kidnappers and plans an escape, Aiden must team up with the FBI to try to find her — tracking down clues only a brother could recognize.

Nonfiction SPRING GREEN - My Life in Dog Years – Gary Paulsen Gary Paulsen has owned dozens of unforgettable and amazing dogs. In each chapter he tells the story of one special dog, among them Snowball, the puppy he owned as a boy in the Philippines; Ike, his mysterious hunting companion; Dirk, the grim protector; and Josh, one of the remarkable border collies working on Paulsen's ranch today.

BLACK - Chinese Cinderella – Adeline Yen Mah In this compelling memoir, Adeline Yen Mah relates the story of her heartbreaking yet inspiring childhood. Set in China in the 1940s, the book chronicles both the abuse the young girl endures as the last child of her father's first marriage and her quiet acts of courage in the face of adversity.

NAVY BLUE - Marley: A Dog Like No Other - John Grogan This nonfiction book has been faithfully adapted for young readers from the #1 "New York Times" bestselling memoir "Marley & Me" by John Grogan! Marley, a lovable Labrador retriever, is always getting himself into trouble. Some may say he is the world's worst dog. But those who know and love Marley understand that nothing can stop his loyalty, exuberance, and passion— not even the Grogans' screen door! How this big, rambunctious dog becomes the heart of the Grogan family is the story of "Marley".

BLACK - Soul Surfer - Bethany Hamilton She lost her arm in a shark attack and nearly died, but she never lost her faith. Now a major motion picture, "Soul Surfer" is the moving story of Bethany Hamilton's triumphant return to competitive surfing and has continued to be a beacon of inspiration to all who hear it.They say Bethany Hamilton has saltwater in her veins. How else could one explain the passion that drives her to surf? Or that nothing — not even the loss of her arm — could come between her and the waves? That Halloween morning in Kauai, Hawaii, Bethany responded to the shark's stealth attack with the calm of a teenage girl with God on her side, resolutely pushing aside her pain and panic while being rescued and brought back to shore. "When can I surf again?" was the first thing Bethany asked after her emergency surgery, leaving no doubt that her spirit and determination were part of a greater story — a tale of personal empowerment and spiritual grit that shows the body is no more essential to surfing, perhaps even less so, than the soul.