ST. HILDA’S & ST. HUGH’S C. V. STARR LIBRARY & LEARNING CENTER Summer Reading Suggestions 2016 Entering Grades 7 and 8 Here is a list of books to enjoy over the summer months. Many of these titles can be found at your local public library (www.nypl.org). Students should try to read every day and are asked to read at least five books of their own choice during the summer months. Your English teacher will provide one or two of these five books, depending on your grade. You may also want to refer to this list throughout the year when borrowing books from the school library. Table of Contents New and Notable 2 Literary Award Winners 2016 2 Classics 3 Dystopia, Fantasy, and the Supernatural 4 Historical Fiction 6 Mystery, Suspense, and Thrillers 8 Nonfiction, Biographies, and Memoirs 9 Poetry 10 Realistic Fiction 11 Science Fiction 12 Sports: Fiction and Nonfiction 13 Suggested Libraries and Young People’s Bookstores 14 New and Notable Included in the following list and noted with an asterisk (*) preceding the author’s name. Literary Award Winners 2016 Awarded by the American Library Association and the National Book Foundation, the 2016 children’s book awards include: Coretta Scott King Book Award (author winner★ and honor★) National Book Award Winner (winner★ and finalist★) Newbery Medal (winner★ and honor★) Pura Belpré Award (winner★ and honor★) Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award (winner★ and honor★) Schneider Family Book Award (winner★ and honor★) Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction (winner★) ★Barzak, Christopher. Wonders oF tHe Invisible World. (Young Adult novel) Seventeen-year-old Aiden has been living like a ghost since his mother tried to stop a family curse by causing him to forget his psychic experiences but when Jarrod, a childhood friend, returns, so do the memories and Aiden is compelled to seek the truth and release them all from the story that has trapped them. ★ Benjamin, Ali. The Thing About Jellyfish. Suzy doesn’t believe that her former best friend Franny, a strong swimmer, could have drowned. After seeing a jellyfish exhibit, she sets out to prove her hypothesis: a deadly Irukandji stung Franny. ★Bowles, David. Smoking Mirrors. Forever changed by their mother's unexplained disappearance, Carol and Johnny Garza soon learn that their mother is a nagual, a shapeshifter, and that they have inherited her powers. In order to rescue her, they will have to descend into the Aztec underworld and face the dangers that await them. ★Brown, Don. Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans. This astonishingly powerful look at one of America's worst disasters is a masterful blend of story and art. ★★Brubaker, Kimberly. The War That Saved My Life. 1939: With her clubfoot, Ada has never been allowed out of their one-room apartment. Then her little brother is shipped out of London to escape the war, and Ada sneaks away with him. ★Engle, Margarita. Enchanted Air: Two Cultures, Two Wings: A Memoir. In poems, Margarita Engle depicts her school years in California, summers in her mother’s native Cuba, and how the 1961 demise of U.S.-Cuban relations affected her family. ★Hoose, Philip. The Boys Who Challenged Hitler. The true story of a group of boy resistance fighters in Denmark after the Nazi invasion. Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) of the American Library Association defines a young adult, as someone between the ages of twelve and eighteen. Young Adult novels explores themes important and crucial to adolescence such as relationships to authority figures, peer pressure and ensuing experimentations, issues of diversity as it relates to gender, cultural, and/or socioeconomic status. These publications may contain mature content. 2 ★Hunt, Lynda Mullaly. Fish in a Tree. Ally's greatest fear is that everyone will find out she is as dumb as they think she is because she still doesn't know how to read. ★Reynolds, Jason. All American Boys. (Young Adult novel) Rashad, an African American teen, is beaten by a white police officer. Quinn, also white, witnesses the incident—and flees the scene. As Rashad’s story goes viral, both boys deal with the aftermath. ★--------. The Boy in the Black Suit. (Young Adult novel) Soon after his mother's death, Matt takes a job at a funeral home in his tough Brooklyn neighborhood and, while attending and assisting with funerals, begins to accept her death and his responsibilities as a man. ★Ryan, Pam Muñoz. Echo. To rescue three sisters—trapped in the woods by a witch—Otto must send his magic harmonica into the world. In three linked novellas, the harmonica saves numerous lives. ★Shabazz, Ilyasah and Kekla Magoon. X: A Novel. (Young Adult novel) Co-written by Malcolm X's daughter, this riveting and revealing novel follows the formative years of the man whose words and actions shook the world. ★Schlitz, Laura Amy. The Hired Girl. (2015 National Jewish Book Award Winner, Young Adult) 1911: Joan finds no art or beauty on her father’s farm, so she runs away to Baltimore. Working for a refined Jewish family, Joan learns she’s less cultured than she thought—but has plenty of potential. ★Sheinkin, Steve. Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and tHe Secret History of tHe Vietnam War. On June 13, 1971, the New York Times announced that a secret history of the Vietnam War existed. Daniel Ellsberg, who leaked the documents, was soon called “the most dangerous man in America. ★Shusterman, Neal. Challenger Deep. (Young Adult novel) A captivating novel about mental illness that lingers long beyond the last page. ★Williams-Garcia, Rita. Gone Crazy in Alabama. Alabama, 1969: What is the deal with Delphine’s great-grandmother, Ma Charles, and Miss Trotter? The half sisters are the same age, live near each other, and haven’t spoken in years. Classics “The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read.” - Mark Twain Alcott, Louisa. Little Women. This classic novel chronicles the humorous and sentimental fortunes of the four March sisters as they grow into young women during the early nineteenth century. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Spirited Elizabeth Bennet matches wits and wiles with the arrogant Mr. Darcy in an entertaining portrait of matrimonial rites and rivalries in Regency England. Crane, Stephen. The Red Badge of Courage. In the spring of 1863, as he faces battle for the first time at Chancellorsville, Virginia, a young Union soldier matures to manhood and finds peace of mind as he comes to grips with his conflicting emotions about war. 3 Defoe, Daniel. Robinson Crusoe. Robinson Crusoe is stranded on an uninhabited island far away from any shipping routes. With patience and ingenuity, he transforms his island into a tropical paradise. For 24 years, he has no human company, until one Friday, he rescues a prisoner from a boat of cannibals. Doyle, Arthur Conan. The Hound of the Baskervilles. Could the sudden death of Sir Charles Baskerville have been caused by the gigantic ghostly hound, which is said to have haunted his family for generations? Keyes, Daniel. Flowers for Algernon. In this classic story, Charlie Gordon, a mentally challenged adult who cleans floors and toilets, becomes a genius through an experimental operation. But when his new intelligence begins to wane, Charlie must confront the loss of all he has learned. Mowat, Farley. Never Cry WolF. Wildlife Service naturalist Farely Mowat is dropped alone onto the frozen tundra, where he begins his mission to live among the howling wolf packs and study their ways. Smith, Dodie. I Capture tHe Castle. A young woman’s prospects begin to improve, when new neighbors arrive from America. Reportedly J.K. Rowling’s favorite book. Tolkien, J.R.R. Fellowship of the Ring. Recounts the flight of Frodo, possessor of the One Ring, and his companions from the Black Riders of Mordor, and the subsequent attempt to come to the place where the Ring could be unmade. Wells, H.G. The Time Machine. The classic story of time travel, good, and evil that is as thrilling today as any modern science fiction novel. Dystopia, Fantasy, and the Supernatural “The gift of fantasy has meant more to me than my talent for absorbing positive knowledge.” - Albert Einstein *Auxier, Jonathan. Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard. Twelve-year-old Sophie knows little beyond the four walls of her father's bookshop, where she repairs old books and dreams of escaping the confines of her dull life. But when a strange boy and his talking cat/horse companion show up with a rare and mysterious book, she finds herself pulled into an adventure beyond anything she has ever read. *Aveyard, Victoria. Glass Sword: Red Queen (A sequel) Mare and Cal flee their betrayer—the Silver king—and find they can’t trust their former allies. To fight the king, they’ll need to cut ties and build an army from scratch. *Black, Holly. The Darkest Part of the Forest. For years, faeries and humans have co-existed in Fairfold. Then Hazel starts a chain of events that will alter both worlds forever. *Green, Sally. Half Lost. (The Half Bad Trilogy. Book 3) Nathan’s honed magical abilities make him a killing machine. But as much as he wants to avenge oppressed Black Witches, he also wants to escape the seemingly endless violence. 4 *Hardinge, France. Cuckoo Song. In post-World War I England, 11-year-old Triss nearly drowns in a millpond known as "The Grimmer" and emerges with memory gaps, aware that something's terribly wrong, and to try to set things right, she must meet a twisted architect who has designs on her family.