2017 Summer Reading Assignments for Grades 7 and 8 (Forms I and II)
Students are required to read five (5) books over the summer. All rising Form I students are required to read A
Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park. All rising Form II students are required to read Undefeated: Jim Thorpe
and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team by Steve Sheinkin. All students must also read four (4) additional
free-choice books from the summer reading list.
The books on this list are divided into general categories. Choose free-choice books from different categories.
Students may listen to audio books, but not exclusively. On the form below, please list the four free choice
books. Any other books read can be listed on a separate sheet of paper.
Important! This signed summer reading form is due the first week of school. The form will count as a quiz
grade for the first marking period. Students will receive a 100% quiz grade in English class if the form is
handed in on time and a 0% if handed in late. The form must be handed in to Mrs. Laurie Sears or Mrs. Ann Liu
in the library.
Title
Author
Category
Rating*
1a. Rising Form I – A Long Walk to Water
Linda Sue Park___________________________________
1b. Rising Form II – Undefeated
Steve Sheinkin____________________________________
2.____________________________________________________________________________________
3.____________________________________________________________________________________
4.____________________________________________________________________________________
5.____________________________________________________________________________________
*Rate the books from 1 to 5 stars, with 5 being the best rating.
Student Name and Grade (printed legibly)___________________________________________________
Parent Name and Signature_______________________________________________________________
FORM I
Required Reading
A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park
When the Sudanese civil war reaches his village in 1985, eleven-year-old Salva becomes separated from his
family and must walk with other Dinka tribe members through southern Sudan, Ethiopia, and Kenya in search
of safe haven. Based on the life of Salva Dut, who, after immigrating to America in 1996, began a project to dig
water wells in Sudan.
English Assignment
(Will be posted at a later date.)
FORM II
Required Reading
Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team by Steve Sheinkin
Jim Thorpe: super athlete, Olympic gold medalist, Native American.
Pop Warner: indomitable coach, football mastermind, Ivy League grad.
In 1907, Jim Thorpe and Pop Warner met at the Carlisle Indian School in Pennsylvania, where they forged one
of the winningest teams in the history of America’s favorite sport. Called “the team that invented football,”
Carlisle’s innovative squad challenged and dominated the greatest, most elite teams—Harvard, Yale, Army.
This astonishing underdog sports story is also an unflinching look at the U.S. government’s violent persecution
of Native Americans and the school that was designed to erase Indian cultures. It’s the story of a group of
young men who came together at that school, the overwhelming obstacles they faced both on and off the field,
and their absolute refusal to accept defeat.
English Assignment
(Will be posted at a later date.)
2017 SUMMER READING FREE-CHOICE TITLES
2
VISITING AUTHOR (May 2017) – Gennifer Choldenko (selected works)
Chasing Secrets
Notes from a Liar and Her Dog
No Passengers Beyond This Point
Tales from Alcatraz series
BOOKS BOYS SHOULD READ BY THE TIME THEY LEAVE MIDDLE SCHOOL
The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
The Cricket in Times Square by George Seldon
D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar D’Aulaire
Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell
Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery (translated by Richard Howard)
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle
Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norman Juster
The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane
Rip Van Winkle and Other Tales by Washington Irving
Stuart Little by E.B. White
Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss
Tales from the Arabian Nights (any version)
The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
CLASSICS, NEW AND OLD
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
Dracula by Bram Stoker
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathon Swift
The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell
The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
Out of the Silent Planet by C. S. Lewis
The Pearl by John Steinbeck
The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain
3
Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
GENERAL FICTION
All American Boys by Jason Reynolds
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
The Big Field by Mike Lupica
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel
The Boy in the Black Suit by Jason Reynolds
The Boy on the Wooden Box by Leon Leyson
Change-Up: Mystery at the World Series by John Feinstein
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
Code Talker: A Novel About the Navaho Marines of World War Two by Joseph Bruchac
Define “Normal” by Julie Anne Peters
Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos (Not for students who read for 6th grade summer reading!)
The Dogs by Allan Stratton
The Dogs of Winter by Bobby Pyron
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
Elemental by Antony John
Elephant Run by Roland Smith
Endangered by Eliot Schrefer
The Extra Yard by Mike Lupica
Falling Over Sideways by Jordan Sonnenblick
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by J.K. Rowling
Fantasy League by Mike Lupica
The Fault in Our Stars by John Greene
First Team by Tim Green
Ghost by Jason Reynolds
Go Big or Go Home by Will Hobbs
Going Over by Beth Kephart
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Greenglass House by Kate Millford
Hello, Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly
Half a World Away by Cynthia Kadohata
House Arrest by K.A. Holt
Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
Ice Dogs by Terry Lynn Johnson
If You’re Reading This by Trent Reedy
Island of Thieves by Josh Lacey
In the Name of God by Paula Jolin
Invisible by Pete Hautman
The Last Mission by Harry Mazer
The Lab by Jack Heath
Lockdown by Walter Dean Myers
Kalahari by Jessica Khoury
The Marvels by Brian Selznick
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
Mosquitoland by David Arnold
The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier
Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes
No Such Person by Caroline B. Cooney
Notes from the Midnight Driver by Jordan Sonnenblick
4
The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
The Only Game by Mike Lupica
Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt
Paperboy by Vince Vawter
The Paper Cowboy by Kristin Levine
Pax by Sara Pennypacker
Peak by Roland Smith
Quicksilver by Stephanie Spinner
Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings
Revolution by Deborah Wiles
The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen
Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys
Saving Sky by Diane Stanley
Schooled by Gordon Korman
Skink—No Surrender by Carl Hiaasen
The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
Throwing Heat by Fred Bowen
Trash by Andy Mulligan
The Trouble in Me by Jack Gantos
True Legend by Mike Lupica
The Walk On by John Feinstein
Watched by Marina Budhos
Whirligig by Paul Fleischman
Wilder Boys by Brandon Wallace
Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk
FICTION SERIES
Read any book in the following series.
The 5th Wave by Rick Yancy
Across a War-Tossed Sea by L.M. Elliott
Arc of a Scythe by Neal Shusterman
Shadow Children by Margaret Peterson Haddix
The Bartimaeus Sequence by Jonathan Stroud
Beyonders by Brandon Mull
Boxers & Saints by Gene Luen Yang
Brian’s Saga by Gary Paulsen
The Brotherband Chronicles by John Flanagan
Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly
Divergent by Veronica Roth
The Dragon King Chronicles by Ellen Oh
An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
The Five Ancestors by Jeff Stone
Gone by Michael Grant
The Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
I Am Number Four (The Lorien Legacies) by Pittacus Lore
Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini
The Illuminae Files by Amie Kaufman
Joey Pigza by Jack Gantos
The Last Survivors by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Legend by Marie Lu
The Logan Family Saga by Mildred D. Taylor
5
The Magisterium by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare
Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard by Rick Riordan
Masterminds by Gordon Korman
Maximum Ride by James Patterson
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Middle School by James Patterson
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Riggs Ransom
The Missing by Margaret Peterson Haddix
The Mortality Doctrine by James Dashner
Mystery at the Olympics by John Feinstein
My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
Ranger’s Apprentice by John Flanagan
Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
The Reckoners by Brandon Sanderson
Sherlock Holmes: The Legend Begins by Andrew Lane
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz
The Trials of Apollo by Rick Riordan
Theodore Boone by John Grisham
The Young Elites by Marie Lu
Zodiac by Romina Russell
NONFICTION
Alexander Hamilton: The Making of America by Teri Kanefield
Becoming Benjamin Franklin: How a Candle-Makers Son Helped Light the Flame of Liberty by Russell Freedman
Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon by Steve Sheinkin
Bootleg, Murder, Moonshine, and Lawless Years of Prohibition by Karen Blumenthal
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba
Boys in the Boat (Young Readers Adaptation) by Daniel James Brown
The Boys of Winter by Wayne R. Coffey
Build Your Own Website: A Comic Guide to HTML, CSS, and WordPress by Nate Cooper
Chasing Lincoln’s Killer by James L. Swanson
Courage Has No Color: The True Story of the Triple Nickles, America’s First Black Paratroopers by Tanya Lee Stone
The Dangerous Book For Boys by Conn Iggulden and Hal Iggulden
The Dark Game: True Spy Stories from Invisible Ink to CIA Moles by Paul B. Janeczko
Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe by Theodore Gray
The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia by Candace Fleming
Five Thousand Years of Slavery by Marjorie Gann and Janet Willen
Follow Your Money by Michale Hlinka and Kevin Sylvester
Forensics: Uncover the Science and Technology of Crime Scene Investigation by Carla Mooney
Guys Read: Terrifying Tales by Jon Scieszka (editor)
Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
If the World Were a Village: A Book About the World’s People by David J. Smith
In the Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel Philbrick
The Industrial Revolution: Investigate How Science and Technology Changed the World with 25 Projects by Carla
Mooney
Lincoln’s Grave Robbers by Steve Sheinkin
Lion: A Long Way Home by Saroo Brierly
Longitude: The Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time by Dava Sobel
The Math Book: From Pythagoras to the 57th Dimension, 250 Milestones in the History of Mathematics by Clifford A.
Pickover
Middle School Confidential by Annie Fox
6
Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War by Steve Sheinkin
Music: Investigate the Evolution of American Sound by Donna Latham
The Mysterious Universe: Supernovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes by Ellen Jackson
The Nazi Hunters: How a Team of Spies and Survivors Captured the World’s Most Notorious Nazi by Neal Bascomb
The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery by Steve Sheinkin
Outcasts United: The Story of a Refugee Soccer Team That Changed a Town by Warren St. John
The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and the Fight for Civil Rights by Steve Sheinkin
Science Made Simple: Weather by John Woodward
Scientists in the Field Series (read any of these books, including the following)
 Guinea Pig Scientists: Bold, Self-Experimenters in Science and Medicine by Mel Boring
 The Polar Bear Scientists by Peter Lourie
 Project Seahorse by Pamela S. Turner
 Sea Turtle Scientist by Stephen R. Swinburne
 Stronger than Steel: Spider Silk DNA and the Quest for Better Bulletproof Vests, Sutures, and Parachute Rope
by Bridget Heos
 The Tapir Scientist: Saving South America’s Largest Mammal by Sy Montgomery
 Whaling Season: A Year in the Life of an Artic Whale Scientist by Peter Lourie
Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
Sugar Changed the World by Marc Aranson and Marina Budhos
They Call Themselves the KKK by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Titanic: Voices from the Disaster by Deborah Hopkinson
Two Miserable Presidents by Steve Sheinkin
Uprooted: The Japanese American Experience During World War II by Albert Marrin
Useful Mathematical & Physical Formulae by Matthew Watkins
The War to End All Wars: World War I by Russell Freedman
The Way Things Work by David Macauley
What Do You Stand For? For Teens: A Guide to Building Character by Barbara A. Lewis
What Is Relativity? An Intuitive Introduction to Einstein’s Ideas, and Why They Matter by Jeffrey Bennett
Which Way to the Wild West? by Steve Sheinkin
World War II for Kids by Richard Panchyk
World Without Fish by Mark Kurlansky
Written in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland by Sally M. Walker
MEMOIR/BIOGRAPHY
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah
Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman
Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice by Phillip Hoose
Death Be Not Proud by John Gunther
Earth Heroes: Champions of the Wilderness by Carol Malnor and Bruce Malnor
Elon Musk: Tesla, Space X, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance
Facing the Lion: Growing Up Maasai on the African Savanna by Joseph Lemasolai Lekuton
I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up for Education and Changed the World by Malala Yousafzai
Isaac Newton (Giants of Science) by Kathleen Krull
John Muir: My Life with Nature by John Muir and Joseph Cornell
Lafayette and the American Revolution by Russell Freedman
Leonardo da Vinci (Giants of Science) by Kathleen Krull
Lives of the Artists: Masterpieces, Messes (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull
Lives of the Scientists: Experiments, Explosions (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull
Sachiko: A Nagasaki Bomb Survivor’s Story by Caren Stelson
Samurai Rising: The Epic Life of Minamoto Yoshitsune by Pamela S. Turner
Sports Short: An Anthology of Short Stories by Joseph Bruchac [et al]
7
Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different by Karen Blumenthal
Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom by Elspeth Leacock
Unbroken: An Olympian’s Journey from Airman to Castaway to Captive (Young Adult Adaptation) by Lauren
Hillenbrand
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis
POETRY AND BOOKS IN VERSE
19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East by Naomi Shihab Nye
Blue Lipstick: Concrete Poems by John Grandits
Booked and The Crossover by Kwame Alexander
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodsen
The Dream Keeper and Other Poems by Langston Hughes
A Fury of Motion: Poetry for Boys by Charles Ghigna
Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai
Out of Wonder: Poems Celebrating Poets by Kwame Alexander with Chris Colderly and Marjory Wentworth
The Poet Slave of Cuba: A Biography of Juan Francisco Manzano by Margarita Engle
Poetry Speaks Who I Am by Elise Paschen
Residence on Earth by Pablo Neruda
Technically, It’s Not My Fault: Concrete Poems by John Grandits
The Trouble with Poetry and Other Poems by Billy Collins
You Come Too: Favorite Poems for Young Readers by Robert Frost
8