Pre‐AP Summerr Reading C
Choices 20016 th
Incoming 7 Gradders Your teachers are looking forw
ward to meeting you! Please come preppared to thinkk, to work hard, and to have fun. You mustt read one of the novels lissted for your grade level before the firsst day of scho
ool. Be preparred to discusss, write abou
ut, and create
e a project forr the novel yo
ou read once yyou get to claass. Please bring your boo
ok to class witth you during
g the first week of sschool. Thee Schwa Was
W Here By N
Neil Shusterman
n
Eighhth-grader "A
Antsy" Bonaano recounts how his acccidental relattionship withh three quirkky characterss winds up
beingg mutually beneficial.
b
The catalyst in
i this sociall collision is Calvin Schw
wa, a classm
mate who hass an almost
supeernatural knaack for going
g completely
y unnoticed. When Antsyy decides to become an ""agent" for tthe "nearly
invissible" Schwaa by entertain
ning wagerss, the boys en
njoy temporaary success uuntil they acccept a dare rrequiring
"Thee Schwa" to enter the hom
me of a legeendary local eccentric annd retrieve a dog bowl beelonging to aany one of
his ffourteen Afg
ghans.
Thee Skin I’m
m In By Fllake, Sharon
Seveenth-grader Maleeka
M
Maadison is misserable when
n a new teachher comes too her depresssed inner-citty school.
Misss Saunders evidently is rich,
r
self-assu
ured in spitee of the whit e birthmark across her bblack skin, annd prone to
getting into kids' faces aboutt both their behavior
b
and
d their acadeemic potentiaal. Black andd bright, Maaleeka is so
swam
mped by herr immediate problems
p
thaat Miss Saun
nders's attenntions nearly capsize her stability. Thhe girl's
mothher has just emerged
e
from
m a two-yeaar period of intense
i
mourrning for herr dead husbaand, during w
which time
her ddaughter hass provided heer with physical and morral support. A
At school, M
Maleeka enduures mean-spirited
teasiing about thee darkness of her skin an
nd her unstyllish clothingg. She seeks solace in wrriting an exteended
creattive piece, att Miss Saund
ders's instigaation, and also in the com
mpany of a ppowerful cliqque of nastyy girls. The
younng teen undeerstands too well
w that herr brains aren
n't as valuablle as the sociial standing that she doesn't have.
**Summaries taaken or adapted from Amazo
on book reviews Helpful
H
Reeading Sugggestions

Give yourrself plenty off time to do th
he required reeading. It muust be compleeted prior to thhe beginning of school.

This is no
ot a requirem
ment, but as you read, yo
ou might wannt to make nnotes to helpp you remem
mber it later.
You coulld—
o
o
o
o
o
Write
W
a quick summary
s
for each chapter..
Create
C
a characcter list as you read.
Write
W
down qu
uestions or preedictions you
u might have aas you are reaading.
Write
W
down im
mportant quotees from the sttory. Explainn why they aree important.
Write
W
an evalu
uation of the novel
n
when yo
ou finish. Whhat did you liike about it? What did youu not like
ab
bout it?
If you
u have questiions during th
he summer, yyou can email [email protected]. See you in A
August!