Independent Reading Suggested Titles

Below is a list of possibilities for your independent reading book. You should plan to purchase or borrow a book for the first month of school. You are not required to choose a book from this list; however, you are required to choose a novel written in first-person narration that deals with coming of age issues. Our first unit is a study of voice and coming of age. To complement our work in the classroom, your book must deal with coming of age issues and have a strong, first person narrative voice. Additionally, you should choose a book that you can reasonably finish in two to three weeks. There are no exceptions to these requirements.

Soldier’s Heart – by Gary Paulson Dog Song – by Gary Paulson Notes from the Midnight Driver, by Jordan Sonnenblick Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie, by Jordan Sonnenblick Stuck in Neutral, by Terry Trueman The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie Sleeping Freshman Never Lie, by David Lubar The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riordan The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd Esperanza Rising, by Pam Munoz Ryan The Skin I'm In, by Sharon Flake Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer No More Dead Dogs, by Gordon Korman Anything, by Sandra Cisneros Crackback, by John Coy Burned, by Ellen Hopkins Crank, by Ellen Hopkins The Highest Tide, by Jim Lynch Just Listen, by Sarah Dessen Boot Camp, by Todd Strasser Tangerine, by Edward Bloor Monster, by Walter Dean Myers She’s so Money, by Cherry Cheva Slam, by Walter Dean Myers Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson Stargirl, by Jerry Spinelli Twisted, by Laurie Halse Anderson A Yellow Raft in Blue Water, by Michael Dorris Ellen Foster, by Kaye Gibbons The House on Mango Street, by Sandra Cisneros The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain A Separate Peace, by John Knowles