Sound Learning Audiobook Collection Lists & Samples,

Now Expanded in 2020

Grades 6 through 8

Use this annotated list to guide your audiobook collection development for grades 6 through 8. Titles are divided into sections reflecting curriculum areas and a final section suggesting great listens for tweens and young teens beyond their classroom studies. Click on the link for a performance sample and read a format- specific review from the AudioFile Magazine database.

Note: The designation #OwnVoices is used for titles both written and performed by those with lived experiences of the cultures the content reflects.

English Language Arts Beowulf, written by Anonymous, translated by Benedict Flynn, narrated by Crawford Logan, Naxos Audiobooks, 2006

Monsters and murders make for intense listening when this much- assigned British epic arrives for listeners in modern English.

Dead End in Norvelt, written and narrated by Jack Gantos,

Macmillan Audio, 2011

This 2012 Newbery Medal story features the indomitable Jack Gantos, telling the “mostly” true adventures of a summer vacation that provide a funny yet meaningful listening experience. Gantos gives a nuanced performance of a young boy’s growing self-awareness. From our original Sound Learning APA Grades 6-8 audiobook list.

Echo Echo, by Marilyn Singer, narrated by Joe Morton and Marilyn Singer, Live Oak Media, 2016

In reverso style poems, which can be read either forward or backward, the author and Joe Morton co-perform a series of verses based on Greek mythology.

The Graveyard Book, written and narrated by Neil Gaiman,

Harper Children’s Audio, 2008

Winning both the Newbery and Carnegie Medals, this novel is brought to life by the author. Eerie background music, well-crafted language, and the author’s compelling voice all work together to spark discussions of how setting shapes characters or plot in a story or drama. From our original Sound Learning APA Grades 6-8 audiobook list.

Jazz, written by Walter Dean Myers, illustrated by Christopher Myers, performed by James “D-Train” Williams and Vaneese Thomas, Live Oak Media, 2007

Winner of the inaugural (2008) Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production, this audiobook combines painting, poetry and music into a mesmerizing whole. The two narrators’ readings expand the effect of the poetry, and the jazz music enables listeners to hear the nuances and emotions of the story (and move to the beat!). An #OwnVoices title from our original Sound Learning APA Grades 6-8 audiobook list.

The Unexpected Life of Oliver Cromwell Pitts: Being an Absolutely Accurate Autobiographical Account of My Follies, Fortune, and Fate, written by Avi, narrated by James Langton, Recorded Books, 2017

Avi’s exploration of early 18th century England, often more sordid than respectable, is captured by Langton, who moves from voices male to female, young to old, and coarse to refined with breathtaking ease.

History and Social Studies The Adventures of Ulysses, by Bernard Evslin, narrated by

Todd Haberkorn, Graymalkin Media, 2016

The journey of the hero, from Troy to his attempts to return home, is told in contemporary language. Haberkorn's performance makes every god, goddess, monster, and natural and supernatural force vivid.

All’s Faire in Middle School, by Victoria Jamieson, narrated

by a full cast, Recorded Books, 2017

From graphic novel to an ensemble cast, the story of a contemporary middle-school-aged homeschooler working in a Renaissance Faire where she feels comfortable and a public school where she doesn’t offers empathy-building listening as well as historically informed details.

Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, by Anne Frank,

narrated by Selma Blair, Listening Library, 2010

The definitive edition, including pages found by the Anne Frank House curators in 2001, comes to listeners through a narrator who makes the famous diarist sound contemporary and familiar.

The Boy on the Wooden Box, written by Leon Leyson and Marilyn J Harran, narrated by Danny Burstein, Simon & Schuster

Audio, 2013

The memoir of Leyson’s childhood as the youngest member of Schindler’s list is narrated by Danny Burstein with dignity. From our original Sound Learning APA Grades 6-8 audiobook list.

Chasing Lincoln’s Killer, written by James L. Swanson,

narrated by Will Patton, Scholastic Audiobooks, 2009

“The President Has Been Shot!” The Assassination of John F. Kennedy, written by James L. Swanson, narrated by

Will Patton, Scholastic Audiobooks, 2013

In each of these titles, Swanson lays out the historical facts with text that is engaging and interesting, lending itself to being read aloud. Patton’s soft, southern lilt lends an additional level of authenticity.

Finding Langston, written by Leesa Cline-Ransome and

performed by Dion Graham, Dreamscape, 2018

Excellent research lays the foundation for an accurate portrayal by novelist Cline-Ransome of the Great Migration. Dion Graham supplies a variety of accents and inflections to make the journey of a Black family from their Southern home to better economic prospects up North vivid. This is an #OwnVoices selection.

Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village, written by Laura Amy Schlitz, narrated by Christina

Moore and a Full Cast, Recorded Books, 2008

Superb performances and excellent production will draw in students who might otherwise find it difficult to read this 2008 Newbery Medal winner. Medieval music sets the stage for monologues that capture the intertwining cross-section of village life, from blacksmith to the heir of the manor as the various narrators “take the stage” to present a memorable play. From our original Sound Learning APA Grades 6-8 audiobook list.

Abraham Lincoln, written by Teri Kanefield, narrated by

Pete Cross, Dreamscape, 2018

Pete Cross brings a straightforward and well-paced narration to a well-researched and accessible biography of the 16th President, which includes quotations from various sources and explanations of Constitutional changes made during his period in office.

My Name Is Not Friday, written by Jon Walter, narrated by

Dion Graham, Scholastic Audiobooks, 2016

The physical and emotional consequences of being enslaved are showcased in a story of freeborn 13-year-old sold into slavery just before the Civil War. Graham’s emotionally connected narration employs cadence, tone, and accent that allow listeners to relate to the a condition shared by thousands during this period.

More Deadly Than War: The Hidden History of the Spanish Flu and the First World War, written by Kenneth C. Davis, narrated by Adenrele Ojo and MacLeod Andrews,

Listening Library, 2018

MacLeod Andrews’ conversational tone makes this World War I history approachable to middle grade students, despite the horror of the more than 100,000 people now believed to have died during the 1918 influenza pandemic. Adenrele Ojo reads the timelines and charts with a removed precision, smoothly separating these facts from the more dramatic storyline. The several afterwords and appendices are also read by Andrews and offer insight into possible future global diseases, their causes, and measures of prevention, making this suitable for units on World War I or on the science of medicine.

Revolution (The Sixties Trilogy, Book 2), written by Deborah Wiles, performed by Stacey Aswad, François Battiste,

J.D. Jackson, and Robin Miles, Listening Library, 2014

Studies of the civil rights movement will be enhanced by the second of Wiles’ Sixties Trilogy, focusing on the events of Freedom Summer in Mississippi. With its multiple narrators and audio docudrama setting, the intertwined stories of two young people coming to terms with the effects of racism in the Jim Crow South includes news clips, protest songs, and other period background material are performed by Jackson and Miles.

Roses and Radicals: The Epic Story of How American Women Won the Right to Vote, written by Susan Zimet, narrated by Cassandra Campbell, Listening Library, 2018

Votes for Women! American Suffragists and the Battle for the Ballot, written by Winifred Conkling, narrated by

Christina Moore, Recorded Books, 2018

Two unvoiced readings take listeners from the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention that officially kicked off the women’s suffrage movement in the United States, to accounts of the suffragists and their involvement in the long struggle for women’s voting rights. Campbell’s vigorous narration unfolds Zimet’s expansive, uncompromising look at the many women who worked tirelessly in the movement, while Moore’s pleasing tones report Conkling’s examination of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony and their sometimes discordant views on how to secure women’s suffrage. Both titles recount the racism that shattered collaboration between white and Black suffragists.

This Is Our Constitution, written by Khizr Khan, narrated

by Sunil Malhotra, Listening Library, 2017

Attorney, immigrant, and Gold Star father, Khan’s introduction to the U.S. Constitution is expressly written for middle-school-aged kids, and Sunil Malhotra’s reading quickly and thoroughly engages and energizes listeners in the exploration of our foundational laws.

Troy, by Adele Geras, performed by Miriam Margolyes,

Listening Library, 2002

Historical fiction building out on Greek legend makes for an excellent way to become acquainted with the people whose lives were intersected by the Trojan War. Both author and narrator are stellar storytellers who sweep listeners into history and make empathy a foregone conclusion.

The Winter People, by Joseph Bruchac, narrated by Robert

Ramirez, Recorded Books, 2003

The French and Indian Wars, as the 18th-century North American battles between what is now Canada and the U.S. are termed by the colonizers, are presented from the viewpoint of an indigenous Abenaki youth, in a fictional retelling of history by an author who shares some Abenaki heritage and a narrator well-known for channeling the voices of serious youth in difficult and realistic circumstances.

STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math

Code Talker, by Chester Nez and Judith Schiess Avila,

narrated by David Colacci, Tantor Audio 2011

The first-person experiences of a Navajo Code Talker employed by the U.S. military during World War II was written for adults, but its simple straightforward text and excellent pronunciations across languages will engage middle listeners as young as middle school.

Dreaming in Code, by Emily Arnold McCully, narrated by

Emily Arnold McCully, Listening Library, 2019

The authors reads her children’s biography of 19th century computer pioneer Ada Lovelace engagingly, bringing listeners into the history behind today’s computer languages and inspiring teens of any gender to explore the possibilities coding presents.

The Elephant Whisperer: My Life with the Herd in the African Wild, written by Lawrence Anthony, with Graham Spence, adapted for young readers by Thea Feldman, narrated

by Simon Vance, Tantor Audio, 2017

Lawrence Anthony’s determined efforts to save a herd of seven “troubled” elephants by housing them on Thula Thula, his South African animal reserve unfolds through Simon Vance’s strong, authoritative narration. Reading with believable hints of both Zulu and Afrikaans accents, Vance immerses listeners in the urgent effort to keep the animals both safe and wild.

How We Got to Now: Six Innovations that Made the Modern World, written and narrated by Steven Johnson,

Listening Library, 2018

In an edition adapted for younger readers, the same author of the original, adult edition which was narrated by George Newbern, narrates his own fascinating look at the innovations and creations making up our world in engaging text and an approachable narrative style.

Isaac the Alchemist, written by Mary Losure, narrated by

Steven Crossley, Dreamscape, 2017

Enthusiasm imbues narrator Steven Crossley’s performance as he reads Mary Losure’s biography which includes primary sources folded into her narrative. Isaac Newton becomes a very real person, both a genius and a youthful prankster, in their treatment.

To the Moon! The True Story of the American Heroes on the Apollo 8 Spaceship, written by Jeffrey Kluger with Ruby Shamir, narrated by Jeffrey Kluger, Listening Library,

2018

Focusing particularly on the career of astronaut Frank Borman, science writer Jeffrey Kluger, reading in his resonant baritone, draws listeners into a spellbinding account of early manned space flight, adapted for young readers from his book for adults. Kluger gives listeners a compelling glimpse into an absorbing time in American history that is by turns intense, humorous, and heartbreaking.

The Wright Brothers: Nosediving into History, written by Erik Slader and Ben Thompson, narrated by L. J. Ensler,

Recorded Books, 2018

The history of aviation arrives with snarky humor along with the facts, both delivered for today’s middle schooler with spot- on energy by authors Slader and Thompson’s writing and Ensler’s delivery. This is the first in a series titled Epic Fails.

Meeting Others Blended, written and read by Sharon Draper, Simon &

Schuster, 2018

Celebrated author Sharon Draper reads her own story of a girl who copes with divorced parents who share her custody. As the story unfolds, Izzy becomes increasingly aware of wanting to own her biracial identity. This is an #OwnVoices selection.

Brown Girl Dreaming, written and narrated by Jacqueline

Woodson, Listening Library, 2014

Woodson’s 2014 National Book Award-winning autobiographical journey describes growing up between worlds – from rural South Carolina to , , and from the Jim Crow south to the burgeoning civil rights movement in the north. Written in elegant, moving free verse and narrated by Woodson in a conversational style, students will feel she’s sitting right next to them, talking about her family and her growing understanding of racial injustice. An #OwnVoices story.

Counting to Perfect, written by Suzanne LeFleur and

narrated by Olivia Campbell, Listening Library, 2018

Summer vacation for a lonely middle schooler brings her face to face with the realities of teen motherhood when she spends the day with her sister. Suzanne LeFleur’s realistic fiction comes to listeners in the evocative tones created by Olivia Campbell that produce empathy and other emotions for listening readers.

Echo, written by Pam Muñoz Ryan and performed by Mark Bramhall, David de Vries, Macleod Andrews, and Rebecca

Soler, Scholastic Audiobooks, 2015

This multi-award-winning audiobook brings listening readers a novel composed of interlocking stories spanning Europe during World War II to America during the Depression and the war itself, all touched by a magic harmonica. The full cast includes the important notes of the skillfully played harmonica, too.

Esperanza Rising, written by Pam Muñoz Ryan and

performed by Trini Alvarado, Listening Library, 2001

This classic middle-school audiobook offers #OwnVoices and authentic cultural history as author and narrator both breathe life into Depression Era experiences among the migrant workers in California’s agricultural fields.

Front Desk, written by Kelly Yang and performed by Sunny

Lu, Listening Library, 2018

A semi-autobiographical and endearing story of growing up in one’s parents’ motel brings every character to life. Both author Kelly Yang and narrator Sunny Lu expose the rich emotional lives of the characters in this #OwnVoices story.

It Wasn’t Me, written by Dana Alison Levy and performed by Robbie Daymond, Ramon de Ocampo, Emily Woo Zeller, Jorjeana Marie, Adenrele Ojo, J. B. Adkins, and Caz Harleaux,

Listening Library, 2018

A full cast performs this school story that provides perspectives of students and teachers in exploring a mystery, bullying, loyalty, and friendship.

Lily and Dunkin, written by Donna Gephart and performed by Ryan Gesell and Michael Crouch, with afterward narrated by the

author, Listening Library, 2016

Two young teenaged boys cope with intense emotions they feel in their personal lives as Michael Crouch portrays one who is exploring his gender identity and Ryan Gesell portrays an outcast with bipolar disorder. Characterizations are authentic in both writing and acting.

The Lightning Queen, written by Laura Resau and narrated by Thom Rivera and Christian Barillas, Scholastic Audiobooks,

2016

Author and paired narrators take listeners back and forth across the U.S.-Mexico border in a tale that spans generations. In addition to Mexican and American cultures, there are also elements of Rom culture in the characters. Both narrators provide #OwnVoices veracity to the storytelling.

Marcus Vega Doesn’t Speak Spanish, written and

narrated by Pablo Cartaya, Listening Library, 2018

Marcus Vega has plenty of things to keep him busy. He helps his single mom by taking care of his younger brother, Charlie, who has Down syndrome. Author Cartaya proves himself to be an excellent narrator, deftly portraying the cadence and tone of characters both young and old, English and Spanish speakers. An #OwnVoices story.

Marvin and the Moths, written by Matthew Holm and Jonathan Follett and performed by Ramon de Ocampo,

Scholastic Audiobooks, 2016

Finding hilarious listening for middle schoolers can take a bit of searching. So, here we have it! Giant baseball-watching moths, science fair projects, and a room under the stairs, imagined by a pair of age-relevant authors and brought completely to belly-laugh life by a master of voice work.

One Crazy Summer, written by Rita Williams-Garcia,

narrated by SiSi Aisha Johnson, Recorded Books, 2010

Listeners spend a tumultuous summer in Oakland, California, with 11-year old Delphine, her two younger sisters, and the mother who abandoned them seven years earlier. Narrator SiSi Aisha Johnson portrays the large cast of characters through subtle changes of inflection and pacing. An #OwnVoices story from our original Sound Learning APA Grades 6-8 audiobook list.

Refugee, written by Alan Gratz and performed by Michael Goldstrom, Kyla Garcia, and Assaf Cohen, Scholastic

Audiobooks, 2017

Author Alan Gratz imagines first-person accounts from the viewpoints of three young teens, in different times and placing, undertaking necessary escapes from their homelands. Three narrators bring these teens to life, providing appropriate intonation and emotional ranges for their stories.

So Done, written by Paula Chas and performed by Bahni

Turpin, HarperAudio, 2018

Narrator Bahni Turpin creates distinct voices for these two girls whose best-friend status is growing unsettled. Authentic relationships and the parade of emotions they can evoke will resonate with these characters’ peers. This is an #OwnVoices selection.

Squint, written by Chad Morris and Shelly Brow and

performed by Kirby Heyborne, Blackstone Audio, 2018

With a title character who goes from outsider with a rich interior life to friend to broken-hearted, masterful narrator Kirby Heyborne has a lot with which to work. Squint becomes fully realized as the events of his 13th year unfold.

Tiger Boy, written by Mitali Perkins and performed by

Sunil Malhotra, Listening Library, 2018

Set in West Bengal, the story of a boy who turns his back on academic responsibilities when a tiger cub seems to need his attention more comes to listeners in a complete range of voices all created and sustained by narrator Sunil Malhotra. This is an #OwnVoices selection.